Light Up the Darkness
by catslovesushi
Summary: She was his light in the darkness and neither wanted to walk away. Their friendship became stronger as they uncovered an evil that would destroy all they knew. An unlikely alliance is formed. Can they destroy it before it destroys them? [alternate-universe]
1. Chapter 1

_**Summary - She was his light in the darkness and neither wanted to walk away. Their friendship became stronger as they uncovered an evil that would destroy all they knew. An unlikely alliance is formed. Can they destroy it before it destroys them?**_

_**Well hello there! After having lived in a different fandom the past few years, I decided to try my hand at a Klaroline fic. I had some of the ideas from last season but the story just didn't really manifest until after 5x11. **_

_**I want to thank a couple people - **__**livingdeadblondegirl**__** for recommending a wonderful beta in **__**CeceVolume**__**. :D**_

_**Important notes for this story - **_

_**- Augustine storyline doesn't exist (That sort of includes the whole Megan roomie thing.)**_

_**- Travelers don't exist either**_

_**- Davina is still a mystery in New Orleans and is being kept safe by Marcel - Rebekah did see her but she was spelled to forget the exact location.**_

_**- Hayley is still linked to Sophie**_

_**In this story, Tyler kidnapped Hayley but **__**didn't**__** draw blood from her womb to create a hybrid. **_

_**- The whole idea of the Harvest ritual and the current storyline of both shows does not exist in my world.**_

_**Disclaimer - I don't own the characters to The Vampire Diaries or The Originals. The title isn't mine either - it came from a quote from the late, great Bob Marley.**_

* * *

Caroline wanted to run. Just being at the boarding house with so many people was making her edgy. While everybody was sitting around waiting for Katherine to die, Caroline felt as though all eyes were on her. She knew she was being paranoid, but the last thing she wanted or needed was to have several sets of eyes judging her for her actions.

"I'm going to go," she announced as she stood up, crossing her arms over her jacket. Looking right at Bonnie, she motioned with her eyes towards Tyler. It was an obvious lie on her part, but she seized the opportunity to play the 'jilted girlfriend' card to avoid suspicion.

"Okay, breakfast at the Grille?" Bonnie asked, quickly understanding the silent signal.

"No, I'm going back to the dorm. You know, prepare study guides and all," Caroline said with a small smile. "Just tell Elena when she comes down."

She was out the door and in her car in a flash. Breathing a sigh of relief that she wasn't interrogated further, she started the engine and headed back to college.

During the drive, her mind wandered to her earlier escapade with Klaus. She had tried to convince herself that getting him out of her system would be easy. He did, after all, promise he would walk away and never come back.

The question was, as Caroline got on the highway, did she _want_ him to walk away? Grateful that she was alone in her car, she turned down the volume of her stereo and began to think.

Sure, she had a life ahead of her - a life she planned ever since she was young. While she couldn't have her two kids as her dream had been, she still wanted to live this lifetime as humanly as possible. She knew her human friends would one day leave the world and she felt it was important to spend it with them.

_But what then, Caroline? Do you want to put aside your new dreams and desires, whatever they may be to live your human life for several decades? What will happen when your friends or you mom die? What then?_

As she drove on, she kept thinking about her human life and her new, vampire one. The thoughts played over and over in her brain. "Stop!" she cried out and quickly turned up the volume of her radio in an effort to drown out her thoughts. She wasn't going to find an answer tonight, on a drive back to her dorm. The whole concept of forever was still something she hadn't fully grasped, but she knew it wasn't worth wracking her brain over at the moment. There will be time for her to ponder her future, but now wasn't it.

As Caroline parked her car and headed into her dorm room, she thought about today and everything that happened out in the woods. It hadn't been planned – it was only supposed to be kiss but something sparked between them and she suddenly wanted more.

Caroline let out another sigh of relief when she walked in, thankful her friends decided to stay at Mystic Falls as they waited for Katherine's demise. She needed the time alone to reflect on what happened and, for once, selfishly enjoy what happened. She grabbed some clothes and made her way to the shower.

She couldn't help but look at herself in the mirror - to see if there were any visible changes after what happened. Other than her hair thoroughly tousled, there was nothing _physically_ different - emotionally and mentally though, she knew something changed.

She stripped out of her jacket and shimmied off her jeans. Her bra was barely hanging on - one of the hooks had broken after he snapped it off her body. Her panties were destroyed out in the woods. She shook her head as she remembered the mischievous smile Klaus gave her as he took the piece of silky fabric and stuffed it into his jacket pocket.

Caroline smiled as she let the water wash away the dirt, indulging in her memories. She ran her hands down her body still feeling his lips and mouth and hands on her. She let out a shudder as she brought her hand along her collarbone. The bite mark was already healed but she continued to feel his fangs in her as he tasted her blood. She wondered if he would feel her ghostly bite on his shoulder.

"_Fuck, Caroline!" he growled as he slammed into her once more. She felt him bend over and arched her back as he dragged his tongue along her spine. _

"_Don't stop!" she moaned, trying to brace herself on the leaf covered ground. _

"_Never!" _

"Klaus," she whispered into the water as she ran her hands down her hips, remembering his hands when they gripped her as he drove into her over and over. It was frenzied and feral the first couple times before they managed to take their time and savor each other.

With her eyes closed, she reached out and placed her hands on the shower wall, wishing she was touching his chest instead. She wanted to wrap her fingers around one of his necklaces, feeling the leather cord against her skin. She let out a whimper as she imagined his fangs as he grazed them along the column of her neck.

The emotions and memories took over as she stood under the shower, the dull ache between her legs throbbed. Lathering her hands with body wash, she tried to imagine her hands were his as she sought relief. It wasn't long before her orgasm overtook her. She stayed under the shower for a while, catching her breath, wishing it had been _his_ fingers instead of hers. It wasn't until the water turned cold that she stopped her fantasy and got out.

Once she was dressed, she grabbed her phone. She knew from their brief conversation as Klaus walked her to the edge of the Salvatore property that he was leaving that evening with Rebekah. His need for revenge on Katherine was no longer an issue.

Knowing he was probably still in the air, she found his name on her contact list and dialed.

"Hey, it's me…" she began when she got his voicemail. She began to pace around the room at almost vampire speed. "I just wanted… you know, what you said in the woods…" she rambled. "I just… I just wanted…" She sighed and gathered her courage. "Idon'twantyoutowalkaway…" Caroline took a calming breath and continued. "I don't want you to walk away. I am just not ready for 'last love' yet…. Anyways, that was all I wanted to say." She ended the call, wanting to say so much more, but knew it was probably for the best to just hang up..

She set her phone down and began to wring her hands. What if what she said wasn't enough? Should she have said more? What if he decided she wasn't worth his time anymore? What if he just deleted her message and really left her forever?

Caroline's brain was starting to hurt and she was seriously second guessing and doubting herself. She was just about to grab a blood bag when she remembered something from earlier in the afternoon. She rushed back into the bathroom and grabbed her dirty clothes, fishing into the back pocket of her jeans. She pulled out a small vial - a gift Klaus gave her as they left. Even though he had promised to leave, he still cared enough to give her a small vial of his blood if she were ever in danger.

She was about to once again head to her fridge when she heard footsteps outside her dorm room. They stopped right in front of her door before moving away quickly. Caroline raced over and opened the door, looking left and right but seeing no one. Spotting something on the floor, she looked down and saw a small box, her name written in an all too familiar handwriting.

She grabbed the gift and shut the door, finally grabbing her blood bag before sitting on her bed once more. She forced herself to finish her blood before she opened her gift. Even after tasting Klaus' blood, she needed to replenish herself after the day's activity.

Caroline gasped when she removed the lid. Inside was a dainty silver chain with a pendant that appeared to be antique. Knowing Klaus as Caroline did, she was _certain_ it was an antique. There was no note this time but she knew-somehow-the vial would fit inside the pendant. It didn't take long for her to figure out the hidden clasp where she stowed the precious blood. Unlike the diamond bracelet he had given her what seemed like ages ago, she didn't have any objections this time to his gift.

It was still early for her but she decided to get into bed and let the memories once again take over. Tomorrow, she'll face the music when her friends come back, but tonight was about her.

**~Meanwhile in New Orleans~**

"_... I am just not ready for 'last love' yet… anyways, that was all I wanted to say._" Klaus replayed the message once again.

After landing in New Orleans he left Rebekah on her own, claiming he needed to feed. After sating his thirst, he wandered down to the docks alone as he thought about what had transpired that morning.

_It had started out normal - as normal as things could be these days - but then he received an incoherent, slurred message from Damon about Katerina dying. It was the moment he had been craving for the past centuries and he couldn't wait to dance on her corpse and perhaps enjoy a fine bottle of Scotch along with it. He quickly ordered a private jet to take him back to Virginia._

"_Mystic Falls, Nik?" Rebekah asked as he finished with his call. _

_He explained to his sister and saw her face light up. _

"_I'll go with you!" she shouted as she ran up the stairs. _

_He smiled, seeing his sister happy - it seemed like a rarity these days when he seemed to be in a constant battle with his siblings. _

"_Why are you going to Mystic Falls, Niklaus?" Elijah inquired as soon as Klaus left his office. _

"_Katerina is dying," he simply replied, expecting a reaction from his brother. He was disappointed though; his brother simply shrugged and walked away, heading across the courtyard and over to that wolf girl's quarters. _

_He rolled his eyes and walked away, wondering why Elijah was so blasé upon hearing the news. Hadn't Katerina been an object of his brother's affections for centuries? _

_Once he was in the aircraft, he asked Rebekah the very thing about Elijah._

"_Nothing?" Rebekah asked and he shook his head. "That Hayley seems to have put a spell on Elijah." _

"_Do you believe he's been bewitched by that girl?" _

_Rebekah shook her head. "There are moments when I'm not sure. I don't think she's bewitched him, though. We've both seen vampires under witches' spells. This seems different. I can't explain it but it is different."_

_Klaus nodded. "You're right, it is different and I had expected some sort of reaction when I mentioned Katerina. All those years of pining for her and he had no reaction. I think upon our return, we should look into this, little sister. In the meantime, we should continue with the charade and play along." _

"_I think you're right, we don't want to arouse any suspicion and we don't know who is or are involved. I'll put a call on some witches that aren't from New Orleans and see what they say." _

Klaus sat on a wooden bench and stared out into the Mississippi. He didn't want to think about his brother and that Hayley anymore. He reached into his pocket and smiled when he felt that satiny fabric before grabbing his phone. If his siblings were to see him now, he would never hear the end of their taunting and would have no choice but to put daggers through them.

Of course, the main purpose of going back to Mystic Falls flew out the window when he spotted _her_ in the woods. Klaus had hoped to see Caroline, but it was not what he expected. He never expected anything more than a confession from Caroline and when her lips met his, it was like heaven. But it didn't stop there; he got much more than he expected before the sun set. If he wasn't a selfish being, he could have died right there and been happy.

Luckily, Rebekah didn't seem too bothered by the fact that they didn't see Katerina on her deathbed.

"_Did you get a chance to see the doppelganger?" she asked once they got on the plane. _

_He simply shrugged knowing that she would react to his indifference. After a few minutes without a response, he looked at her as she stared out the window. "Did you?" _

"_No, Matt and I talked after I rescued him," she said. "What about you? Did you see her?"_

"_Who?"_

_Rebekah rolled her eyes. "Don't play dumb with me, Nik. You know who I'm talking about." She paused as if to wait for him to respond. When he didn't, she continued. "Caroline. Did you see her?" She spoke to him as though he was a dullard and he had half the mind to dagger her right there, had he been carrying one. _

"_I might have caught a glimpse of her," he replied nonchalantly. _

_She raised her hands up in exasperation. "Alright, I get it, you don't want to be interrogated. Look, we have our share of differences and yes, we are probably the shining example of an estranged family…"_

_He chuckled at her words, nodding in agreement. _

"_...but we're family, Nik. Forever and always. In all the centuries, I've never seen you like this with anyone. I hope she's worth it." _

_Instead of acknowledging her, he turned the tables on her instead. "What about the quarterback? Is he your new beau?" _

_She looked over at him and gave him a small smile before picking at her overcoat. "No, he wishes to stay a human and remain in Mystic Falls. He is a good person and even though we were nothing more than a summer thing, I wish him the best." _

_Klaus nodded. While he didn't fully understand his sister's intentions, he did admire the way she respected the boy's wishes, not that Klaus would ever admit it to his sister. Had that been his intent earlier today – to respect her wishes and let her live her life? Would he be able to after what transpired out in the woods? _

"_And if he were to ever change his mind and come to New Orleans?" he asked. He wondered if she would ever appear at his doorstep as he so arrogantly predicted once. _

"_Well, I won't say no," she replied with a small smile. "He knows I'd give him the world if he wanted." _

The remainder of the trip was silent as they both got lost in their thoughts. It wasn't until the plane landed that Klaus realized he had a missed call from Caroline along with a voicemail. He couldn't, for obvious reasons, listen right away so he waited until they headed their separate ways.

He wasn't sure what to expect when he hit the play button. Was she going to scream and yell at him or was she going to say she regretted the entire thing. In fact, that was exactly what he expected as he steeled his nerves and pressed play. He was shocked as he listened to her message, the way she rambled gave him hope. She didn't want him to walk away from her life. While she wasn't ready for the possibility of _them_, she hadn't dismissed the idea either. He could live with that.

Knowing it was getting late for the young vampire - he really didn't want to call her a baby anymore - he decided to leave her a text message.

_If it isn't too forward, perhaps we can use the time to get to know each other._

A few minutes later, his phone indicated a new message.

_ I'd like that and thank you for the necklace. It's very pretty. _

He was momentarily stunned by her acceptance of the necklace. He wondered if she was smiling right now or if she would always wear it. It warmed his blackened heart and the feeling was overwhelming. He smiled that she responded back so quickly and his token was well received this time.

_I'm sure it looks beautiful on you, Caroline. _

Klaus wanted to use one of his typical terms of endearments, but knew now there was time for that. For the first time in his long life, he felt genuine hope.

* * *

_**NOTES: **__Well? Did you like it? What do y'all think? I'll also have this up on AO3 as well as a backup. The link to Caroline's pendant is on my profile if you're interested. :)_

_Since I'm new to the TVD world, I will need some cover art/banner - PM me if you have any ideas or recommendations. :)_

_You can also find me on Tumblr as atxsushi. My icon is one of my kitty cats - Puck. :) _

_Thank you again! XO ~ sushi_


	2. Chapter 2

_**So I thought I'd give you another chapter now though future chapters will probably be updated roughly once per week. **_

_**Thank you for the alerts and reviews so far. :)**_

_**Thanks to my lovely prereader HannahPerry85 and my wonderful beta CeceVolume. **_

_**Disclaimer - I don't own the characters to The Vampire Diaries or The Originals.**_

* * *

Caroline woke up the next morning slightly groggy - her night had been filled with erotic dreams of a hybrid with a British accent. As much as she wanted to lay in bed and waste the day away, she couldn't, since her roommates were coming back and if the text message was any indication, they'd be there in a couple hours.

She quickly scrambled out of bed and threw on some clothes. Using her vampire speed, she created some study guides for the next hour, in case either Bonnie or Elena asked about her sudden departure. After the hour was up, she grabbed a blood bag and started straightening up around the dorm room.

Caroline was like a Whirling Dervish as she moved about cleaning and scrubbing every nook and cranny of the room. It was crazy, but it helped calmed her nerves as reality started to sink in. She was beginning to grow nervous imagining all the bad things her friends would say to her. Sure, she could keep it a secret, but she knew, as luck would have it, that one day they would find out if she hid the information from them. She decided to keep quiet for now and wait for the opportune time.

The door opened just as she was scrubbing the inside of her mini-fridge.

"Care?" Bonnie began as she walked into the room with Elena following closely behind.

"Oh my god, Care, you wouldn't believe the wild story Tyler told when you left!" Elena reached over and grabbed a blood bag. "Mmm, I needed one of those; my head was feeling funny."

"What story is this?" Caroline asked, hoping her ex-boyfriend hadn't been suspicious of her activities out in the woods. "Did you drink too much last night, Elena?"

"No, I just had those shots earlier in the day, that was all," she replied. "It's not a hangover headache, it's just weird feeling."

"Alright, maybe it's just stress and all. So, what is the news?" Caroline asked again.

"Well, when you left, Tyler started drinking and then talked about Klaus and how he's becoming a baby daddy to a werewolf," Bonnie explained. "Of course, Tyler was a little more crude in his descriptions."

Caroline froze, her cleaning rag and spray bottle fell to the floor. "What?" she asked, higher pitched but quieter. No, it couldn't be, could it? "Is it possible?" She turned around and faced her friends, sitting on the floor, in front of the fridge. Bonnie's back was turned as started putting clothes away while Elena flopped down on her bed, staring at the ceiling.

"According to Tyler, he said it was something about a loophole, but he was drunk at the time, so who knows," Elena said with a shrug and flipped back around so she faced Caroline before getting up. She moved quickly and kneeled in front of Caroline, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Are you sure you're okay, Caroline? You look a little flushed."

Bonnie tossed some clothes onto her bed and moved towards Caroline and Elena, staring at her two friends. She didn't notice Caroline looked 'off' and figured it was something only vampires and their acute eyesight would notice. She did, however notice how _clean_ their dorm was and figured it had to do with seeing Tyler at the boarding house.

"Um, yeah," Caroline replied with a smile. "I'm fine. I've just been cleaning, that's all. Why else would I be flushed?" She turned back around, picked up her cleaning supplies, and started scrubbing again. This time, the inside of their microwave - the same one she had cleaned just before she started to tackle the fridge.

_How could this happen? Was it really possible? _

"I thought this stuff only happened with sparkling vampires," Caroline quipped as she concentrated on an invisible speck of dirt. She practically winced at her forced joke and told herself to calm down.

"Care, something's wrong. Talk to us," Bonnie said softly as she walked over and touched Caroline's shoulder.

"It's just…" Caroline began. She wanted to lie or ignore their questions but she knew the inevitable was here. She slumped onto the floor and braced herself for the worst. "I did something bad."

"What are you…" Elena began but suddenly grabbed her head and screamed in agony. It was like a witch aneurysm except she slumped to the floor immediately and passed out.

Caroline's woes were suddenly forgotten as she and Bonnie brought Elena to her bed. Caroline ran into the bathroom and rinsed out a washcloth to set on her friend's forehead.

"What was that, Bonnie? Was that witch stuff?" Caroline asked in a whisper.

"No, it wasn't," Bonnie replied as she looked at Elena with worry. "She's been saying how off she has been feeling ever since Katherine died."

A few hours later, Bonnie and Caroline were sitting on either side of Elena's bed. There was still no sign of her waking up and they were beginning to worry.

"Should we call Jeremy or something?"

Bonnie shook her head. "There's probably little he can do since she's a vampire. And if we called Damon or Stefan, they'll show up and fret like crazy."

Caroline didn't mean to, but snorted at her friend's remark. She nodded towards their friend and gestured to keep their voices low.

"What?" Bonnie asked, in a whisper. "Am I wrong?"

"No," Caroline replied, "you're not wrong, it's just funny to hear it said out loud. But if she doesn't respond by this evening, we should call one of them."

Bonnie nodded and looked as though she was about to say something when Elena moaned.

Caroline quickly went to grab a glass of water and set it on Elena's nightstand.

"What...what happened?" Elena asked groggily, her voice cracking as she slowly looked around.

"You passed out for a few hours, are you okay?"

"Yeah, Bonnie, I'm fine," Elena replied and slowly sat up. "Wait. You said I was out for a _few hours_?"

Caroline nodded. "You had just finished your blood bag and let out a painful scream before you passed out cold." She handed Elena the glass and watched as she gulped it down and placed it back on the table.

Elena shook her head. "I kinda remember that. You were about to say how you did something bad." She turned to look at Caroline.

"We can talk about it when you feel better," Caroline suggested, feeling nervous again for bringing it up.

"Care," Elena began and reached to grab Caroline's hand, offering her reassurance. "You looked really upset. Talk to us."

Caroline looked at her friends who were silently encouraging her. Elena moved over on the bed and patted next to her. Both Bonnie and Caroline squeezed into the full bed just as they did when they were younger.

"Talk to us," Bonnie said.

Caroline took a deep breath. "Well, it isn't what I _did_ was necessarily bad," she began.

"Come on, Care. It can't be _that_ bad," Elena said.

It took a few breaths before Caroline had the courage to tell her friends. "I slept with Klaus."

There was silence. Bonnie's jaw dropped and Elena was just staring at her.

"Klaus?" Elena asked.

Caroline nodded.

"The hybrid who terrorized Mystic Falls?" Bonnie asked, as though confirming the facts.

Caroline shut her eyes and nodded, knowing any second now, she was going to lose two of her best friends.

"Was it consensual?" Elena asked softly.

Caroline raised her head and opened her eyes. "What?! No, he didn't force me."

The anticipation that at any moment, world war three was going to break out in the dorm room got to Caroline. "Well, aren't you going to say what a horrible friend I am?" She leapt off the bed and stared at her friends, her hands practically clawing at her pant legs in anticipation. "So go on!"

Elena opened her mouth as though she was going to bash her friend and then stopped, confusion written all over her face. "That was weird," she muttered and looked over at Caroline. "I don't get it. I was about to lay it into you about how he killed Aunt Jenna and Tyler's mom but then… then it was as though something was telling me not everything in life is black and white."

Caroline looked at her friend who was clearly confused. Did that fainting spell affect her more than it should? "Are your emotions turned off?"

Elena shook her head. "No! Is it possible to feel like you have two minds?

"I'm not really following," Bonnie said. "Take a breath, Elena, and talk to us. Once we can figure out what's going on with you, then we'll both talk to you, Caroline."

The blonde smiled and moved back onto the bed. She was slightly relieved to drop the subject to help her friend get to the bottom of what's going on.

"As I was saying, I was about to admonish Care for being with Klaus but then it was like another voice was telling me life wasn't simply black and white. Then I had these images in my head… but it was weird, everybody was wearing clothes from a different era." Elena paused and looked as though she was concentrating on something. "Elizabethan, I think? It looked like stuff they wore in that 'Shakespeare in Love' movie."

"That seems like a strange dream," Caroline commented. "We are sort of studying Shakespeare right now. Could that be it?"

"I don't know," Elena replied. "I think Elijah and Klaus were in the dreams but they called themselves 'Lord Elijah' and 'Lord Niklaus' and I was hu-" Elena was about to add more but stopped. Her eyes widened in shock. "I think I was Katherine!" she exclaimed. "But why?"

Caroline gasped. "Did Katherine body snatch you? Is she in there?" Caroline leaned over and looked into Elena's eyes, as though she was looking for another being inside her friend's head.

"No!" Elena cried out. "How would we check?"

"If you're Elena, what kind of stuffed animal was I carrying when you first met me?" Caroline asked, almost mimicking her mom whenever she interrogated suspects.

"It was a stuffed unicorn that you named Pretty Prissy," Elena replied quickly.

"What were you wearing when you and I first met?" Bonnie asked, following Caroline's cue.

"We met at the park and I was wearing a red plaid dress with ribbons on my hair. I was crying because one of the ribbons had fallen off after I slid down the slide and you brought it to me."

Convinced that their friend _wasn't_ Katherine Pierce, the three of them hugged each other.

"Okay, that's good that it looks like Katherine Pierce hasn't taken over Elena's body," Caroline said. "What else could it be then. Any ideas Bonnie? Is it a witch thing?"

"Wait! I remember something!" Bonnie said suddenly. "Last night when Katherine passed through me, she seemed different." Bonnie closed her eyes and tried to remember exactly what happened before the pain of being the anchor overtook her senses. "It was like she was a shell of herself!"

"Is that some magic stuff?" Caroline asked out loud, never imagining she would ever enjoy solving mysteries like this one. "Or...or could it be doppelganger stuff?"

"Whoa," Elena began. "If it was doppelganger stuff, wouldn't I have gotten memories from the first doppelganger, what's her name...Amara? Or what about Tatia?"

"I'm not sure," Bonnie replied. "I mean, I might have to do some research but think about how different Katherine was. She was a vampire who was turned back human and then died. Tatia didn't die that way and neither did Amara. That has to be the key."

"This sucks if I have Katherine's conscience now," Elena muttered. "But at the same time, I certainly wouldn't have wanted to be Amara, she was strange."

"But you're still you, right?" Caroline asked. "You're not going to suddenly start dressing up in clubbing wear and stilettos to class? Because that would be frientervention time."

"Yeah, I'm still me," Elena said with a smile. "Just a little… I don't know. I do like that theory, any other ideas?"

The three of them tried to come up with other ideas, nothing seemed to make sense and probably won't until Bonnie had the chance to grab some grimoires.

"I'll do that in the morning since my classes don't start until noon," Bonnie said. "Don't worry, Elena, we'll try to figure this out. If it is her conscience, would you want me to find a way to remove it? I won't be able to, personally so it means I'll need to find a witch to help and all."

"I don't know," Elena replied, rubbing her temples. "It's a lot to take in and as much as I didn't care for her, and yes, I know that's an understatement, I guess things could be worse, like the whole body snatching idea of Caroline's." She playfully stuck her tongue out at her friend.

"Hey!" Caroline exclaimed, pretending to be insulted. "A lot stranger things have happened in Mystic Falls so that really wasn't _too_ far fetched."

"Touché," Elena quipped before grabbing both of her friends' hands and giving them an affectionate squeeze. "I'm still me, don't worry. I just feel...I don't know how to explain it, it's me but more relaxed version, if that makes any sense."

"Wiser?" Bonnie offered and shrugged when her two friends stared at her in shock. "Look, she's not my BFF by any means but you've got to admit, as conniving as she was, she managed to escape Klaus over and over for centuries. That takes gut and wisdom."

"I hate to admit it, but she's got a point," Caroline said. "I guess we could look at this as a good thing?"

"It's different that's for sure," Elena replied and looked over at Caroline. She narrowed her eyes giving Caroline the same look she had gotten when she was being mock-interrogated earlier. "So back to you; is that why you were so shocked by that baby news? You feel something, don't you?"

Caroline's first inclination was to lie and say no. Instead, she looked down, almost ashamed and admitted, "Yes. I don't want to, and I fought against it for a while, but we talked and kissed and then one thing led to another…" Tears threatened to fall from Caroline's face. "I thought it was enough but now I'm not so sure and it scares me. I don't want to fall for him. He's done bad things. And…and…"

"And we've all done bad things, Care," Elena said and tapped her head with her finger. "I may have been a vampire for a shorter time than you but even I have done bad things already. Hell, it isn't just blood on my hands, I played with the hearts of two brothers!" Elena's eyes widened and she clasped her hands over her mouth. "Oh my god, I could end up like her and hurt another set of brothers," she whispered more to herself than her friends. "Sorry, I'm beginning to think I'll be doing some soul searching sometime soon. In the meantime, as I was saying, all of us have done something bad."

"Yeah, I got involved with Expression and look where it got me," Bonnie said with a wry smile. "And about the whole baby thing; as much of an ass Tyler was being, he also mentioned - or rather gloated - about how it was karma that Klaus was being trapped by witches to be with this girl."

"What?" Caroline asked, a little more than shocked her friends were not admonishing her. While it was a known fact that they didn't care for Klaus, she didn't expect them to show their support for what she did.

Bonnie reached over and pulled the necklace on Caroline's neck. "I sort of saw it earlier when we helped Elena onto the bed. Is this from _him_?"

Caroline merely nodded, a little wary of the former witch's reaction.

"It's meant to hold something inside." Bonnie examined the pendant on Caroline's neck. "His blood?"

Caroline nodded again.

Elena had now moved closer to the two and was just listening to the conversation.

"He must care for you a lot," Bonnie said as she let go of Caroline's necklace. "This isn't just a vessel to hold his blood, Caroline. This has powerful protection magic surrounding it and I wouldn't be surprised if that stone has been spelled to protect you from the sun."

"But he promised to walk away from my life," Caroline whispered, not wanting to tell her friends that she didn't want him to. To be perfectly honest, she knew she wasn't ready to fully admit it to herself either.

"It may have been his promise, but he also wanted you to be safe from evils. If I'm not mistaken, this amulet will protect you not just from werewolves but it might protect you from witches as well."

Caroline was deeply touched by the gift but at the same time, confused about this whole upcoming baby thing going on with his life. As much as she liked to believe Klaus genuinely cared for her, she still had her vulnerable, insecure moments when she believed she wasn't worth a _forever_.

Caroline sat down and stared at the necklace. Now that she slept with Klaus, was he still interested? Sure he responded back to her voicemail and they were going to get to know each other. What if he grew bored of her? It could happen, she reasoned. He was over a thousand years old, after all and she was a barely an adult. But he wouldn't have given her this token of not just his affections but to ensure her safety if there wasn't _something_ there.

A part of her wanted to rage at him but taking a look at Elena she decided she should take a page from _her_ friends' book and try to use her wisdom and talk to him.

"I'll talk to him and try not to judge," Caroline said quietly and quickly got a hug from Elena.

"I'm going to take a walk around campus, get some fresh air," Elena said as she headed towards the door. "This whole new outlook on life thing… I need some alone time. I'll be back."

Bonnie was next. "Just so you know, we're on your side. The others might not be. If Tyler got wind of this, he won't be as understanding."

Caroline nodded. "I know." She knew the subject of Klaus Mikaelson would forever be a sore subject when it came to Tyler and she hoped news of her rendezvous would never reach his ears.

"It was out in the woods, wasn't it? The reason why you were late?"

Caroline nodded, a slight blush appeared on her cheeks. "I am not ready to drop everything and move to New Orleans, though."

"One day you might be?"

"Yeah, you never know. One day, I might be."

"Well, I'm not going to tell you what to do with your life," Bonnie began. "Just make sure you're going in without blinders. If it's truly what you want, I'll support your decision. Whatever it is."

Her friends' reactions had Caroline thinking. "Bonnie, do you think I was too hard on Elena? When she was with Damon?" Caroline asked, now that she realized her friends were not shunning her. "Be honest with me, I can handle it."

"You know I'm not Damon's friend," Bonnie began as she sat down next to Caroline. "I think we probably could and should have supported her more."

"I feel like instead of being her friend, I sort of ostracized her for being with Damon because of personal reasons."

Bonnie put an arm around Caroline. "I was guilty of that too. I think we both forgot our friend was first and foremost _our_ friend."

"I'm seeing that now," Caroline admitted. "I can never be a friend of Damon, but I get it now."

"Yeah, me too. You just don't get yourself caught in some crazy loophole where _you_ end up with supernatural babies," Bonnie teased as she playfully nudged her friend.

"Oh god, could you imagine?" Caroline played along, grateful for such wonderful friends. "Would I need to combine the parents' names to create a unique one?" Both girls laughed at the 'Twilight' reference.

"Come on, Care, let's go find Elena and grab some food."

* * *

_**Note**__: So as you may have guessed, Elena is OOC in this story. I didn't want to have her going back and forth between Damon and Stefan so I had to change things up a little. _

_Let me know your thoughts, I'd love to hear from you. :)_

_Until next time, XO~ sushi_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Happy Sunday! This is your pre-Oscar chapter for the week. :)**_

_**I've gotten some alerts and some reviews so thank you very much! **_

_**Thank you to my **__**prereader HannahPerry85 and my wonderful beta CeceVolume for working on this chapter. **_

_**As always, these aren't my characters. **_

_**Enjoy!**_

* * *

The few days since returning from Mystic Falls, Klaus and Rebekah continued to act 'normal'; snapping and bickering at each other around the house. It didn't matter what they argued about, whether it was Rebekah causing a scene at the French Quarter and drawing Marcel's attention or Klaus and his infamous temper, Elijah was none the wiser it was merely a ruse. In the meantime, they each contacted witches outside of New Orleans—allies of theirs who could figure out what was going on in New Orleans and were willing to help.

They also avoided their other house 'guest', Hayley, who seemed to dote on Elijah and vice versa. Rebekah tried to be cordial to the pregnant girl at first, especially since they were all living under the same roof. Soon, the constant doe eyes Hayley gave her older brother was sickeningly sweet, so much so that for a moment, Rebekah admitted to herself that she preferred her brother with the now-deceased Katerina Petrova.

For Klaus, avoiding the wolf-girl was effortless and something he had already been doing. Even though she was carrying his child, he saw her as nothing more than a vessel. Even then, it was a stretch—he had no need for an heir, as much as Elijah tried to convince him. He was thankful she kept to her part of the wing. If he had his way, she would have been living elsewhere if it weren't for his big brother and his sense of 'honor'.

Klaus and Rebekah carried the charade over in public as well, so they would remain not only under Elijah's radar, but Marcel's. Klaus had his suspicions that Marcel was somehow more involved than just controlling the witches, though he had yet to figure out what that was. Rebekah was convinced a mystery girl name Davina was the reason, though neither of them could figure out why or how—especially given their brief and unexpected encounter.

It wasn't easy for Klaus to just sit idly by without taking some sort of action; the longer he had to wait, the more restless he became. He longed to rip out hearts of both vampire and witches, but he couldn't. Not yet. As much as he wanted to confront and destroy Marcel to regain his rightful place as king, Klaus _knew_ had to restrain himself. This wasn't some Mystic Falls wayward scheme to destroy him or his family - this was bigger and there were too many unknown factors. Until he had the knowledge of the players and motives, Klaus knew fighting blindly was unwise and dangerous.

His phone vibrated in his pocket indicating a new text message and he quickly scanned and deleted it before setting it on the bar.

_ Dauphine and Canal. In front of the chemist. 10 minutes_

Klaus rolled his eyes and made a show of being irritated. He pulled out a fifty dollar bill and set it on the table. "Keep the change," he said to Camille with a flirtatious smile. When he first saw her, he imagined seeing Caroline's face on the girl. They both had fiery attitudes, blonde hair, and both were easy on the eyes, but that was where the comparison ended. The more he continued talking to the bartender, he realized she was nothing like _her_. There were no strange and pleasant feelings of happiness whenever he spoke to Camille. She was independent, but also tried, perhaps too hard, to read those around her. It didn't take long before he grew bored with this game and of the tavern maid, especially after his recent visit to Mystic Falls. As much as he wanted to stop, Klaus continued the charade as several of Marcel's minions were lurking about. Besides, he told himself, the psychology-student-turned-bartender could prove useful later on, seeing how Marcel appeared to be enamored of her.

"Thanks, whiskey guy," Cami replied with a wink as Klaus got up and left the bar.

Klaus walked casually towards his destination, clearly aware he was being followed. But once he crossed Canal Street and was no longer officially in the French Quarter, he knew Marcel's spies would leave him be. He wasn't sure how long he was given the freedom to move about outside the Quarter but, for now, he was going to take advantage of it. He saw Rebekah studying what looked to be a map of the streetcar system. When he approached her, he saw her look quickly at across the street. Immediately, she was aware of their audience so she stood tall and glared at her brother.

"There you are! Nik, I want my own car, you promised me," she said angrily. She wasn't yelling but knew the spies were listening to their conversation.

"When you start showing responsibility, little sister, I'll buy you a car. We have gone over this and now you're making a scene," he said slowly and with malice, his eyes didn't match the anger in his voice.

"Ugh, fine," Rebekah replied as she threw her hands up in the air, continuing her tantrum. "Well then you can continue to chauffeur me, for all I care!" she exclaimed defiantly and flipped her hair back to show her annoyance.

Klaus stomped over to his sister and took her arm. Rebekah played the part perfectly and acted as though her brother was dragging her down the street. Once they were well away from nosy vampires, their pace slowed and they walked side by side in silence.

"I heard back from Aria," she said quietly, using the old Nordic language of their human lives.

"And?" Klaus replied back, copying her.

"She's going to ask around but promised to get back to me within forty-eight hours."

"Did she have any theories?"

"No," Rebekah replied, this time speaking in English. "She doesn't believe it is ancestral magic, though."

"I didn't believe as such, either."

The two continued along some side streets until they arrived near the cruise ship terminal.

"Nik, just how acute are your werewolf senses?" Rebekah asked suddenly.

"What do you -" Klaus began, confused about his sister's question. He looked at Rebekah realizing his sister was looking at something in the alleyway. He walked over and glanced over to where his sister was focused on.

"Are you able to sense it?" Rebekah asked before he had a chance to say anything.

"What are you getting at, Rebekah?" Klaus growled as he noticed a dog mounting another in the alley. "What are you insinuating, exactly?"

Rebekah sensed that her brother was quickly losing his temper and held her hands up in an effort to show she meant no harm. "I was just curious of you are able to sense when humans are…" Rebekah quickly thought of a word to use that hopefully wouldn't invoke her brother's wrath. "... in estrus?"

In an instant, Klaus pulled his sister roughly into the alley and was about to snap her neck, wishing he had a dagger handy when her words finally caught up to his mind. He stilled and dropped his arms back to his sides as he thought back to _that_ unfortunate evening.

"You're referring to the girl?"

"Hayley, her name is Hayley. I might not be, what is the term these days? BFF? Regardless, she still has a name," Rebekah answered, with a roll of her eyes. "So would you? I mean, we recognize other changes in female humans, would your wolf senses have noticed that?"

It was true, ever since he had broken the curse, his already acute vampire senses were heightened. Klaus recalled the wolf packs he encountered and their females. Yes, he would have known long before all the liquor dulled his senses, he just _knew_ it. Klaus gave a curt nod, answering his sister's question. Klaus motioned his sister to follow and together they walked quickly to an abandoned warehouse where they were able to speak freely.

"I would have," Klaus replied once they were inside. "I don't recall anything that would have indicated she was in that phase."

"It must be magic then," Rebekah replied once the steel door to the warehouse was shut. She moved towards the middle of the room where old, rusted and dusty furniture stood. Klaus walked right by her and brushed off some cobwebs off of a couple chairs. "It has to be, right? Do you think it's all related, this so-called 'nature's loophole', Elijah's behavior, and this mysterious Davina?"

Klaus shrugged and sat down, gesturing for his sister to do the same but she refused, preferring to stand instead of soiling her clothes. "It would not surprise me if they're all related, little sister. However, I haven't been able to see the motive or what faction is behind this scheme."

"I'm not sure," Rebekah replied. "At first I thought it was an effort to distract you with a possibility of a family, but I can tell you don't care for her."

"She was nothing more than a warm body to momentarily sate my base urges," Klaus muttered. "Stupid mistake."

Rebekah looked at her brother as he stared up at the ceiling. "You have a point. If they really wanted you to be distracted, they would have used Caroline instead," she said with a small smile, in an effort to create some levity.

"Not funny, Rebekah," Klaus growled. "I do understand what you're implying, though, even if your attempt at humor is in bad taste. In the meantime, have you gotten any leads on where Marcel has hidden that Davina girl?"

It had been agreed, during their return trip home, that they would divvy up the tasks. While Klaus kept Marcel and his merry band of misfits busy, Rebekah would do her research and find out everything she could about the mysterious girl.

"Not yet, but I went to Tulane today to look at their library," Rebekah replied, ignoring her brother's weak insult. "I found an article about a missing girl, Davina Claire. She was declared missing after Hurricane Katrina and presumed dead." Rebekah reached into her purse and pulled a photocopy. "I can't say for sure given how young she looks in this picture, but this could be her, Nik, given the brief glimpse I had of her."

Klaus looked at the picture. "She's a witch given how she spelled you?"

Rebekah nodded. "It isn't the same enchantment spell that the New Orleans witches use. It isn't even the same as the Bennett witch either."

"We'll have to exercise caution," Klaus asked and Rebekah nodded. "You did well, little sister."

"If my theory pans out, you should buy me a car," Rebekah joked. "One that I won't have to hide around town so I can keep up with the charade." The fact that he even complimented her was unexpected. It meant a lot to her that Nik was giving her some responsibilities. As much as she liked to shop and create havoc now and again, she liked feeling useful.

"Little sister, if you're correct about the miracle baby, Elijah, and the Davina girl being somehow all linked together in a grand plot, I'll buy you a Bugatti Veyron, if you'd like," Klaus said with a smirk. "In the meantime, it's best if we continue what we're doing. We don't want to rouse suspicion that we're looking for answers."

"Got it, remain in the status quo until we have answers. By the way Nik, I'd rather have a MacLaren," Rebekah quipped, before getting serious once again. "She promised within 48 hours so it shouldn't be long." Even as she repeated the words and sounded confident, a part of her _hoped_ that Aria would ally with them and help their cause. Otherwise, they were both back to square one.

"How well do you trust her and what is her payment for her services?"

"I trust her well enough. I promised her one of mother's grimoires in return for her assistance," Rebekah replied. "I also made sure she understood what could happen if she double crossed us. What is it that you say, 'old, young, dead or alive…witches are a pain in the arse.'"

Klaus chuckled at the words he muttered more than once. "Right you are. I suppose we ought to head back to the house, we don't want to arouse any suspicion from Elijah while he continues to play house."

"Nik, we'll get him back," Rebekah said just before they headed out. "We'll get to the bottom of this mess."

**~Somewhere in the French Quarter~**

"So what's the report?" Marcel asked as he knocked back another shot at the underground vampire club he owned. Ever since his arrival, Marcel suspected Klaus was up to his no-good ways. He knew his sire coveted the title as king and would do anything in his power to overthrow him, given the chance. Therefore, Marcel made sure his most trustworthy men were assigned to follow him around the Quarter.

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Thierry replied.

"Yeah, he had a drink at Rousseau's and then left soon after a text message came through," Diego continued. "He seemed upset by it. We followed him to Canal Street where he met up with his sister. They argued before walking away, still bickering."

Marcel gave a nod to his men and then reached over to pour them a couple shots of whiskey. "Sounds like Rebekah was riding his ass about something," he muttered, mostly to himself. He also wondered if he should extend his directive and have his men follow Klaus everywhere—not just within the Quarter. It really didn't matter to him. Even if he were to, Marcel was protected by magic and he _would_ know if magic was used. Whatever Klaus and his siblings were doing, and he was convinced they were up to something. He was confident it would be some sort of failed coup.

_Perhaps he should anyway, just to piss off his sire, _he thought as he poured himself another shot. He dismissed the idea for now—there would be time for that later. Marcel looked up at his men and held up his glass as a sign they should drink. "He hasn't asked about witches or anything?"

Both Diego and Thierry shook their heads. "Not today," Thierry provided.

"He chatted with Cami when he was the bar," Diego added.

Marcel tried to remain calm at the news but inside, he was seething. He wanted the girl for himself and didn't like the fact that Niklaus Mikaelson was moving in on someone he was interested in. He knew if he wanted any chance with Cami, his future queen, he had to up his game.

"Good," Marcel replied with a smirk, hiding his irritation from his men. "Continue following him and keep me up to date. Let me know immediately if something unusual occurs. The Mikaelsons arguing is _not_ considered unusual, but pay attention to their conversations."

"They were arguing about cars," Thierry replied. "Nothing that sounded out of the ordinary. Something about how he doesn't let her drive and she wants to."

"Some things never change," Marcel quipped and patted the backs of the two vampires before pouring more drinks for them.

**~Whitmore College~**

Ever since their recent trip back to Mystic Falls, Caroline continued to wonder about her life goals she had made as a human and insisted on keeping after she became a vampire, to some degree—obviously, having kids and her golden retriever were out of the question now. She tried to imagine what forever would be like, but she couldn't.

_What would the future look like? Would there be flying cars? Will other planets be colonized? Would food taste different?_ A part of her believed they were silly thoughts. Then again, that was how they always showed the future in movies, so she reasoned it wasn't _too_ silly after all.

_What exactly did she want?_ She _wanted_ to graduate college and spend time with her human friends and mom before she had to leave—whether it was due to people not noticing her age or other circumstances. _That_ much she concluded over the past few days. While she would have loved to stay in Mystic Falls for longer, her lack of aging would one day prevent it, unless she wanted to live her life as a recluse and Caroline wasn't about to become one.

Beyond that, she wasn't too sure. She didn't plan a _certain_ hybrid that seemed to take a small piece of her with him when they parted ways. She knew she wasn't ready to leave her current life for a chance at his, but it still made her think of possibilities.

She hadn't contacted Klaus ever since the night she returned and he hadn't either. A part of her knew he was letting her set the pace, at least, that was what she was hoping. She would have been lying if she said she hadn't thought of him. She did and she dreamed about him too. She was eternally grateful not all her dreams left her hot and bothered, that would have been awkward to explain to her roomies.

Over the past few days she had her thumb over his name and was tempted to send him a text message or two but she didn't. She didn't want to be _that_ clingy girl she saw in movies. Instead, she kept busy and studied.

Her phone beeped interrupting her thoughts and she turned to look.

_ Hey Care, I need to talk to you._

Caroline stared at her calculus book and growled. Not only was her schoolwork irritating her, but the text messages from Tyler were as well. _Did she really need to know the area under a curve? _She could easily compel her professor into giving her a passing grade. It would be so simple and she wouldn't have to strain her brain cells in Calculus class. _Focus, Caroline_, she reminded herself, took a deep breath and continued on with her studies.

_ Come on, Care, I made a mistake. I want to talk to you._

_ I miss you. _

Caroline glared at her phone. "Dammit Tyler, go away!" she growled. She knew she was avoiding him but she really didn't have anything to say. She knew she couldn't avoid him forever and if he continued, she was going to have talk to him. Right now, she just wanted to be left alone. After all, he left her to pursue revenge. _He_ made his choice and now was trying to crawl back to her. Once again, she was made to feel like she was second fiddle. She shut her phone off in a fit of anger and went back to studying.

"Where's Elena?" Bonnie asked as she entered their dorm.

"She said she decided to head back to Mystic Falls," Caroline replied with a wink, grateful for the distraction. "Something about needing the alone time to think and then she wanted to spend time with Jeremy."

After perusing through some of Bonnie's grimoires, the three of them decided Elena's situation was indeed a by-product of being a doppelganger. While there was nothing that explicitly mentioned a conscience occupying another's body, they were able to hypothesize that was what happened. For a few nights, Elena had dreams that she'd remember vividly the next morning, but they weren't dreams but more of Katherine's memories.

Bonnie and Caroline still continued to quiz Elena, to make sure she wasn't body snatched by Katherine. They blurted out questions at random times just to see if they could throw Elena off her game but, after a couple days, they were convinced Katherine wasn't going to appear before them. They also made sure to stay close to her as much as possible—in case she had another fainting episode. Other than the day she came back from Mystic Falls, it didn't happen again.

Elena had been spending more and more time on her own, stating how she needed to get used to the idea of having absorbed Katherine Pierce's conscience. She insisted that as long as they were only memories, she would be fine. She was still the same Elena—overall—what with the way she complained about the Salvatore brothers fawning over her. She was also a little different. _Wiser, like Bonnie mentioned,_ Caroline thought to herself.

"Who called this time?" Bonnie asked as she sat down on Elena's bed and faced Caroline.

"From what I heard," Caroline began and rolled her eyes. She pushed her Calculus book aside and lay across her bed. "It started out with Stefan calling and then Damon jumped into the conversation. They're both wondering why she hasn't called or texted. She finally told me the excuse I told you and left."

"Gotcha," Bonnie said and began to power her laptop. "Not that they'll know as soon as they scour the town."

"Right?!" Caroline exclaimed. "That's what she wants, though. Hey, so did you make contact with Grams yet?"

For the past couple of days, Bonnie tried to contact the Other Side and talk to her grandmother about Elena's situation. It wasn't a guarantee they would find any answers but thought it was worth a shot in contacting her. Bonnie even brought up the idea of having Jeremy help but Elena didn't want her brother to know the actual reason. He didn't _need_ to know more supernatural stuff than he already did. "Still nothing," Bonnie replied. "She'll respond when she has an answer."

"I know, you sort of warned me that it's not like a telephone call," Caroline said and sighed, a little disappointed by the news. "Do you think anybody there would know for sure?"

Bonnie shrugged, unsure of the answer. "Your guess is as good as mine. Are you ready to take a break on studying Calculus to help me with English Lit?"

The two of them studied in silence over the next few hours, only taking a break after their pizza delivery arrived. Stefan sent Caroline a text message asking about Elena and she replied with Elena's message.

"Ugh, it's probably Damon this time," Bonnie muttered when she heard her phone chime a few minutes later. She got up and checked, her brow furrowing as she read the message.

"What's wrong, Bonnie?" Caroline asked as she saw her friend's confused expression.

"It's a message from someone name Aria. She said my Grams and hers knew each other and studied magic together according to the text. I'm gonna go give her a call and talk to her," she replied, grabbing a jacket. "I'll be back."

"Sure, okay," Caroline said as she continued to work some on her assignment. A few minutes later, she saw a pop-up notifying her that Tyler had emailed her.

"Seriously?!" she cried out in frustration and grabbed her phone. Caroline was trying hard not to break the glass screen as she angrily typed a quick message to her ex.

_ We have nothing to say, Tyler. Please leave me alone. _

After sending the message, she turned her phone off and contemplated changing the number. It wouldn't be a bad idea, she would get to choose who would be able to get her number and who wouldn't. She giggled as she imagined Tyler's expression when he tried calling, only to get a wrong number.

_That's bad, Caroline_, she chided herself as she stared at the phone. At the rate this was going, she would to talk to Tyler soon. _I'll give it a two more weeks, three tops,_ she decided, believing by then, the right words would come to her. Right now, it still hurt to imagine him turning his back and walking away from her, especially since he showed up at Mystic Falls a few nights ago.

_Was she wrong in wanting to move on from him? What if he was her so-called epic love? No_, she reasoned. Had he _been_ her epic love, he wouldn't have walked away so easily.

The sound of the door unlocking drew Caroline from her thoughts.

"So what did this Aria want?" Caroline asked, noting Bonnie's troubled expression. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"Everything is okay, relatively," Bonnie began cryptically and slowly took her jacket off, taking her time to hang it on their coat rack. She didn't say anything more and Caroline was about to ask when Bonnie sat down on her bed and looked at Caroline. "She was contacted by Rebekah for some help."

Caroline gasped out loud. "Rebekah? As in the Original?" Caroline exclaimed, not quite sure if she heard right.

"The one and only," Bonnie replied and added a huff. "I don't believe it myself. According to Aria, they need a witch to help them uncover some strange happenings in New Orleans. She told them that she'd let them know in 48 hours and then proceeded to contact me."

"What strange things? Like Silas strange?" Caroline shuddered at the memories of last summer's terror in Mystic Falls. She grabbed her wrist as she remembered how he compelled her to cut her arms.

"I'm not sure what's going on, to tell you the truth," Bonnie admitted, giving her friend a small, remorseful smile. If she hadn't fallen into the Professor Shane's influence and gotten involved with Expression, she knew, her life would be different than today. "Whatever it is exactly doesn't sound good, given that Aria was promised one of Esther's grimoires as payment."

"But why did she ask your help?"

"Like I said, earlier, my Grams was friends with hers. She also knows that I'm a Bennett witch...or rather _was_ a witch and I could help her with spells and such. Plus I have my own collection of grimoires that might help her."

"So you're a witch consultant now?" Caroline asked with a laugh, trying to lighten up the mood.

Bonnie aimed a throw pillow at Caroline. "Yeah, I guess so." She was also relieved by the shift in mood.

"Does that mean you're going to help the Originals?"

"Aria said that while she doesn't have all the facts, something is upsetting the balance and it isn't Klaus or his siblings. She won't know until she contacts them to give them her decision. If this is all true well, I can't believe I'm saying this," Bonnie muttered with a look of disgust. "But yeah, I guess that's exactly what it means."

* * *

_I thought this chapter helped set the stage for the story. Let me know your thoughts or if you have any questions. _

_Thank you! XO ~sushi_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Hello again! It's time for another chapter! :) Glad you are enjoying the story so far. **_

_**Props to my pre-readers DarkNNerdy and HannahPerry85 and for CeceVolume for her awesome beta skills. **_

_**Most of the characters aren't mine except for Aria who you'll meet today.**_

* * *

"See you after the weekend, guys," Bonnie called out as she opened the door. She was heading back to Mystic Falls to sign some paperwork so that her dad's house could be put on the market. Since Jeremy had school the next day, she made plans to meet up with Aria at a coffee shop outside of town.

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow evening when I drive out," Elena said as she looked up from her bed, where she was studying next to Caroline.

"Are you sure my mom can use your bed when she comes over on Saturday?" Caroline asked looking up from her textbook, just before Bonnie was about to walk out.

"You always ask that." Bonnie gave her a teasing wink. "And yes, I'm fine with it. Have fun spending time with your mom. See you later."

It was a quiet Thursday night and, since neither one of them had classes scheduled on Fridays, it was usually reserved for movie nights or extended trips back home. This weekend, Caroline was looking forward to spending time with her mom who was driving up for an overnight visit.

Five minutes after Bonnie left, Elena pushed her school assignments aside. "We should drink." She got up and grabbed her purse. "Come on, let's go get some bottles. It's our weekend and you're done studying."

Caroline nodded, not needing to be told twice. She jumped off the bed and grabbed her jacket along with her purse. "Sure, you drive."

Elena and Caroline returned less than an hour later with two large grocery bags of liquor as well as some pasta. They had found a quiet store not quite close to campus where they only needed to compel the clerk. They decided to change into pajamas before each grabbing a bottle of vodka and sat on Caroline's bed, propped against the headboard. One of their favorite movies, 'Brave', was playing on mute and they were half paying attention to it while they drank.

"Ugh, I'm not looking forward to seeing the Salvatores tomorrow," Elena announced as she capped her bottle and began to twirl it in front of her. "I decided it's time I talked to them about where we all stand."

"I guess you can't really avoid them if you're going to Mystic Falls," Caroline noted as she followed with a swig. "Will you be okay?"

"Yeah, I've been doing a lot of thinking now that I have this new conscience. I don't want to play them both and I have been, just like Katherine," Elena said and scrunched her face up at the mention of her former nemesis.

Caroline looked over at Elena and place her hand on her friend's shoulder. "Are you getting used to her memories?" she asked with concern.

"I don't know if I'll ever get used to Katherine's memories," Elena replied with a grimace. "But they're livable. I mean, it could be worse, right? She could have taken over my body or something crazy like that. Like I said to you and Bonnie, as long as I don't act like her, I should be fine."

"So what are you gonna do?"

"I'm gonna talk to both of them." Elena nodded emphatically as if to make a point. "I need to explain that I can't keep going back and forth whether it's intentional or not. I can see how much it hurts them when one is chosen over the other," Elena explained. "I can't have them fighting because of me, either."

"Do you think they'll accept the news?"

Elena shrugged. "They'll have to because I'm leaving."

"What?!" Caroline screeched, her body about to jump off the bed until she nearly overturned the bottle she had propped up against her.

"Yeah," Elena said. "I may not have inherited her coldness, but I seem to have inherited her nomadic nature, minus being chased by an Original, of course." She added a teasing eyebrow waggle at Caroline and got a playful shove in return. "Besides, after my talk with Damon and Stefan, it would be nice to just be on my own."

Caroline just stared at her friend. While it made sense that she would want space after her discussion, it just didn't sound like Elena to run off. She had to remind herself that her friend was not the same person, that it was possibly some strange doppelganger effect.

"Where would you go?" Caroline asked before taking another swig.

"I don't know, maybe head west and then overseas. It'd be nice to explore." Elena stared at her friend for a moment. "Is it weird that I sort of want to visit Bulgaria?" she whispered as though revealing a secret.

"It's sort of where your ancestors are from, right? Or doppelganger?" Caroline asked, a little unsure since she was beginning to feel the effects of the alcohol.

"Not sure how that works exactly, but yeah," Elena replied as she swung her vodka bottle around in front of her.

"You'll come back though, right?"

"I'm sure I will. I'll keep in touch. It's not like I'm running away from danger. I just want to find myself."

Caroline raised her bottle. "Well here's to finding yourself...ourselves." She giggled as they clinked their bottles together. The two of them downed the rest of the vodka and grabbed two more bottles.

"So, Katlena," Caroline slurred as they were both about half way through with their second bottles. They were now sitting on the floor facing each other with their legs crossed- their backs against their own beds, the movie long forgotten. "What if they followed you?"

"I hope they didn't...don't," Elena replied and furrowed her brow. "Wait, did you jus' call me _Katlena_?"

"Did I?" Caroline shrugged and shook her head erratically so her hair fell in front of her face. "I…oh, I dunno. Mebbe."

"Yer drrrunk," Elena slurred. She began giggling when Caroline kept trying to brush the hair away. "Wait… I'mmm drrrunk. And I'm not Katlena, Caroline Mikaelshun!"

"What!" Caroline's voice rose several octaves high at her friend's taunt. She reached up, grabbed a pillow off her bed, and aimed it at Elena. With her motorskills impaired by the alcohol, she gauged her strength wrong and hit her friend harder than intended, knocking her over. It didn't help Elena's cause that she, too, was drunk and even as a vampire, her balance was off.

"You bitch!" Elena shrieked and glared at Caroline before attempting to put her in some headlock maneuver. It didn't work and she only managed to topple onto Caroline. Caroline's protest sounded more like a hiss and was so unexpected that they both froze before bursting into a fit of giggles. The two continued to laugh and hug as though they were long lost friends reuniting until they passed out on the floor.

"Ugh, we didn't even eat!" Elena exclaimed as she woke up sometime around midnight. She pushed off the floor and moved the bottles away before deciding to crawl over to the small dinette set near the front of their room.

"I'm so glad we're vampires," Caroline muttered and shook her head as if to clear the last effects of alcohol. "We'd be past 'stomach pumping' if we were human," she said staring at the empty bottles.

"Probably more like body bag," Elena finally stood up and began plating up their late dinner.

"I can't believe we passed out like that and can function a few hours later," Caroline said as they sat down in front of the table and ate. "So you're really gonna leave? It will be weird without you here."

"Aww, we'll keep in touch; email, Skype…I won't disappear, honest."

"So about being honest," Caroline began. Elena looked over and she took a deep breath before continuing. "I am sorry I wasn't supportive of you when you and Damon got together."

Elena gave her a small smile before scooting her chair over and wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "I'll admit, it sucked, but I get why, given your history." She remembered the marks on her friend's skin but never asked and given Caroline's animosity towards Damon, it certainly wasn't good.

"If I didn't do what I did, with Klaus, I wouldn't have understood it and related," she admitted. "I half expected you to give me that attitude just as I gave it to you."

"Like I said that day, I wanted to, but apparently my brain helped me see things differently," Elena replied. "Since we're apologizing, I need to apologize to you when my emotions were turned off. I said and did some mean things to hurt you and your mom. It was pretty fucked up."

Caroline knew just how upset Elena was by her swearing. "We're good now, right?"

"Yeah, we're good. But how are _you_ doing?"

Caroline shrugged as she grabbed some breadsticks and handed Elena one. "Okay, Tyler's been trying to get a hold of me. He wants me back and says he's sorry," she said and rolled her eyes. "He left me to seek revenge on the Original Hybrid and now that he's back, he wants...no, I think he expects me to come back to him!" She shook her head and looked up at the ceiling. "It's not like I could forget _that_ easily, if at all."

Elena grabbed Caroline's hand and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "So you're going to be with Klaus then?" Elena asked with concern. "Because if you are, you need to make yourself clear with Tyler. You don't want to end up like me. Believe me," she added with a half hearted chuckle.

"No, like I said when you both came back, I'm not ready to be with him. I want a few more life experiences in under my belt," Caroline admitted. What she didn't want to say out loud was how intimidated the prospect of being with Klaus was. He had been around for a millennia, while she was in only her nineteenth year on earth. It was at that moment, chatting with her friend that she realized she _did_ need more life experiences. The man who fancied her lived _several_ lifetimes and she was barely into one. Caroline explained the very thing to Elena before adding, "Plus I want to be sure this wasn't a rebound thing. He's willing to move slow, to give us a chance to get to know each other."

"I think that's a good idea. You'll have to make sure Tyler understands. By you avoiding him, he's just going to continue with his emails and texts."

"I know," Caroline replied and gave a heavy hearted sigh. "I just have to build up my courage and find the right words. So you're going to tell Bonnie and Jeremy tomorrow?"

Elena nodded. "If she stayed tonight, we could have had our slumber party but I'll spend time with her when I'm there. Maybe we'll go to the Lake House and just hang out."

"Since it sounds like I won't see you after the weekend," Caroline remarked. A part of her wanted to cry knowing she wasn't going to see her friend for a while but, at the same time, she wanted to show her support. She steeled herself and smiled brightly at Elena. "You have to promise the next time we're all together, we have a slumber party, no matter what, okay?!"

Elena laughed and nodded, grateful for Caroline's support. "No matter what!"

**~Mystic Falls - the Next Morning~**

After Jeremy left for school, Bonnie drove over to a small coffee shop the next town over. After ordering a latte and a croissant, she sat down at a quiet, corner table and waited for Aria to show up.

She was checking her phone for messages when she felt a light tap on her shoulder. "Excuse me, Bonnie? Bonnie Bennett?" a tall, brunette asked in a soft, European accented voice.

"Aria?" Bonnie noted that the woman was probably a few years older than her and if she was an animated character, she probably resembled Princess Jasmine of Disney's Aladdin.

The young woman nodded with a smile, extending her hand out for Bonnie to shake. "Aria Mubarak, it's nice to meet you. Let me get something to drink; I'll be right back."

Minutes later, Aria returned with a chai and a muffin and sat across from Bonnie. "I'm so glad you agreed to meet. I didn't get you out of classes, did I?"

Bonnie shook her head. "I don't have classes on Fridays."

Aria laughed. "I did the same thing. So where are you studying?"

"Right now, I'm at Whitmore College and I'm undeclared since it's my first year. It's close to home, plus it's where my two best friends are. Where did you go?"

"I grew up outside of Washington D.C., but went to boarding schools in Europe most of my life," Aria explained. "My first two years were at a university in France, but then I graduated last year from Georgetown, political science."

"So how do you know the Mikaelsons?" Bonnie asked as she gauged the woman sitting next to her. Bonnie thought that she seemed friendly and so far didn't give her any indication she was someone who couldn't be trusted. But, Bonnie was still cautious; the whole Professor Shane incident still haunted her mind - he also gave her no reason _not_ to be trusted and it led her to her demise.

Aria looked around and moved her chair closer to Bonnie, giving them a sense of privacy. "Rebekah saved my great-grandparents when they first visited New Orleans sometime in the 1900s. When grand-mère realized I had the skills to be a witch she told me the story. It was as though she considered herself somewhat of an ally even though she knew other witches wouldn't understand the reasoning."

Bonnie understood why Aria felt loyal even though she herself didn't feel the same way towards them. "So have you given her an answer yet?"

"Not yet," Aria began and started peeling the muffin paper away. "I wanted to meet with you first because I would like your guidance and I wanted to be sure you'd be on board." She took a sip of her beverage and continued. "As I explained, something strange is going on in New Orleans and all signs point to some imbalance there."

"Signs?"

Aria looked around nervously to make sure nobody was listening in on their conversation. If she could burn some sage this very minute. Instead, she leaned closer to Bonnie. "I have the ability to speak to the dead, but sometimes it requires more of my energy than others."

"Okay," Bonnie replied though it sounded more like a question to Aria's vague response.

"It's hard to explain and I don't want to go into too much detail right away. Basically, my family is witch on my mother's side. My father's Egyptian and his ancient ancestors were priests and priestesses for the pharaohs."

"Wow!" Bonnie exclaimed. "You can trace your family history that far back?"

"They kept scrolls. I'm actually named after a priestess during Ptolemy's reign. Some of the spells there help me communicate with them but, like I said, it takes me a while to recover after." She must have sensed Bonnie's confusion so she quickly added. "My magic comes from both sides of my family."

"So…" Bonnie began. "Where do I come in?"

"So as an anchor, I'm hoping to draw your energy to help me so I can find the answers to help their city regain balance."

"But what if they took advantage of that and upset the balance themselves?" Bonnie asked. She wanted to be sure she knew what she was getting into, before getting involved in something potentially destructive.

"I can help everybody understand when the time comes, you included. It might require a slight tip of balance in our favor, but it would only be temporarily," Aria replied cryptically. "I can see you have your doubts, so I'll let you mull it over. If you want, we can walk over to the park over there and it's private enough where you can contact your grandmother to verify."

It sounded like a good idea and Bonnie could use the fresh air. She grabbed the rest of her coffee and together, they headed across the street. They found a picnic nestled amongst some trees, giving the two a sense of privacy and sat across from each other.

"So what now," Bonnie asked as they both set their drinks on the table.

"Do what you normally do to try to contact her. I'll help," Aria said. "It will be like a signal boost for a radio, if that makes sense," she explained.

Bonnie closed her eyes, as she focused on reaching out to her Grams. In the background, she could hear Aria softly chanting.

"Yes, child?" Grams asked as she stood by a tree a few feet away from where Bonnie and Aria were sitting.

"Did you hear Aria earlier?" Bonnie asked, knowing she was speaking the words out loud. Even though she knew she was talking to her Grams, a part of her wondered if this was some sort of trick - much like the tricks Silas used to get his way.

Grams nodded and looked over at Aria who had her eyes closed and was still chanting away. "Now, I could tell you stories of your childhood and how you loved visiting me all the time, but we honestly don't have the time. She's correct and you have every right to doubt what you're seeing and what you'll be hearing." She gave Bonnie a look that was, unmistakably Grams - one that Bonnie saw a few times in her childhood when she misbehaved.

The gesture was enough to convince Bonnie that she was really speaking to Grams and nodded for her to continue. "There is an imbalance and it needs to be stopped. With your help and some from this side, we will be able to give her the power she needs."

"We?" Bonnie asked. "But how?"

"There are some witches here on this side that are going to help you both." Grams looked over at Aria once more. "She will explain it all. I know it sounds mysterious, but give her time and she will explain everything."

"But what about the Originals? Can we trust them?" Bonnie asked.

Grams closed her eyes for a moment. "You will, eventually. You know my views on vampires but this thing that's happening, is bigger. Our nature to dislike vampires will have to be put aside."

Bonnie sighed, realizing her Grams had a point. She got up slowly from the bench and walked closer towards her grandmother, stopping at the edge of the table. "Can she do this?" She motioned with her head towards Aria.

"Bonnie, you need to listen to this because it is important - Aria's magic is different than ours. It's not evil like Expression, but you might still consider her methods unorthodox. She is going to try to regain balance. It _will_ mean you'll be working with those we considered enemies for a while, but you can do it - we all can and I'll be watching you, as always."

Bonnie nodded. She felt a little more at ease about the idea of working with Aria now that she had her chance to talk it over. She was still unsure with what was happening but figured the answers would come soon. She looked at her Grams and smiled, wishing she could wrap her arms around her for all her advice. "Okay Grams, I'll keep that in mind." Bonnie turned and began walking back towards her spot on the picnic bench.

"Good, have Aria call Rebekah," Grams called out. "You will all need to find a neutral spot to meet and you might want to bring Caroline."

Tears glazed over Bonnie's eyes as she nodded again. "I miss you, Grams."

"I miss you too, child. Tell Aria that Evie says hi. Oh, and please let your friend Elena know that she won't turn into Katherine. She has the opportunity to be her own person and embrace the strength and wisdom she was given. I have to go now but I'll be in touch again."

"I love you, Grams," Bonnie whispered. Tears fell from her eyes as her grandmother's image faded away.

Aria stopped chanting and opened her eyes. "Bonnie, are you alright?" Aria asked as she reached into her purse for a tissue to hand to Bonnie.

"I'm fine," Bonnie replied and dabbed her eyes. "Did you really help me right there?" Aria nodded. "Sorry, I wanted to make sure what you said was true. I figured Grams would verify and she did. I just had bad experiences, no hard feelings?"

Aria smiled as she held her hand out. "I understand, none taken. Do you want to stay while I call Rebekah?"

Bonnie shrugged as she returned the smile. "Sure. Grams did say we need to suggest we meet at a neutral spot and that I bring my friend Caroline."

"Oh?"

"She's one of my best friends and is a vampire, if that bothers you," Bonnie replied. She was tempted to tell Aria how Caroline was the object of Klaus' affections but she didn't want to sound like she was gossiping about one of her best friends.

"That's cool you're friends with a vampire," Aria said and smiled. "If she has no issues with me, I won't with her. I guess you could say I don't adhere to the notion that all vampires are bad." She pulled out her phone and searched for a number.

"Is Evie your grandmother?" Bonnie asked.

Aria paused and nodded. "That was her nickname. Her given name was Rebecca Evelyn. Her parents named her after their savior."

"My Grams said she said 'hi' to you."

There were tears in Aria's eyes as she smiled softly. "I had a feeling she watched over me. Thank you, Bonnie for letting me know." She used the back of her hand to wipe the tears on her cheeks before pressing a button on the phone.

"Hello Rebekah, it's Aria, sorry to keep you waiting. I have your answer."

**~Meanwhile, in New Orleans~**

Rebekah was trying to not get her hopes up as she answered her phone. Out of all the other witches she knew, Aria was probably her best hope. Rebekah was banking on the fact that the girl's family still held her in high regard after saving her great-grandparents from being mugged and possibly murdered nearly a century ago.

"Hello Aria," Rebekah replied as she walked towards the docks. It was bound to be full of tourists since the latest cruise ship just arrived an hour ago and she easily blended into the crowd as she continued talking on the phone.

"I will be able to help you," Aria said. "I hope you don't mind that I bring someone along to help."

Rebekah was relieved and leaned against an old brick building as she thanked the gods above. While she didn't like the fact that the witch recruited help, she figured even with Nik on her side, they'd have an advantage.

"Fine," she said curtly. "When can you come here and undo all the witch business?"

"I'd rather we all meet up and work out a plan," Aria said calmly. "I'm near the D.C. area, but let's find somewhere half way."

Rebekah didn't like that they needed to come up with a plan but agreed all the same. "How about Atlanta? Can you be there in a few days?"

Aria must have muted the phone for a minute and Rebekah wondered if the witch was with this unknown ally. "We can meet next weekend," she said a few minutes later.

It would have been better if they could meet right away but she knew better than to upset the witch and agreed.

"Fine, I'll text you with the details," Rebekah said, sounding exasperated and ended the call before sending a message to her brother.

_ Meet me at the warehouse. Have news._

Within minutes, her phone indicated a new text message.

_ I'll be there shortly._

* * *

"Okay, we will be there next week and we'll meet with them sometime Thursday or Friday night," Aria said when she ended the call. "Will your friend be able to join?"

"I'll let her know. In the meantime, don't reveal who your partner is. It might be an advantage we can use." Bonnie wasn't sure Rebekah would want to be in the same room as her, much less want her help.

Aria gave a little smirk. "I like your thinking." She looked at her watch. "Hey, I've got to run, meeting some friends for dinner back in D.C. My father's got a place in Atlanta there's plenty of room for us all if you're interested. I'll send you the details when I get them and we can coordinate."

"Sure, that sounds cool," Bonnie replied.

"Thank you again, Bonnie. It was good meeting you," Aria said and gave her a small hug before leaving.

Once she was gone, Bonnie walked back to her car and sent a text message to Caroline before she headed back to Mystic Falls.

_ Don't make plans next weekend, it'll be a long Girls Only weekend!_

**~Whitmore College~**

After a pancake breakfast morning, Caroline and Elena hung out at their dorm as Elena packed some clothes for her weekend trip and started to set aside some other things for her other adventure.

Caroline was keeping herself busy by folding and packing Elena's things into the small rolling suitcase. As much as she respected her friend's decision to find herself, a part of her was sad that one of her long time, childhood friends was leaving.

When Bonnie's text message came through, it lifted Caroline's spirits and she quickly responded.

_ Hell,_ _yeah! I'm game! Anywhere special?_

The answer came less than a minute later.

_ Atlanta :)_

"Okay, Care, I'm ready," Elena said a few minutes later. They hugged before Elena opened the door. "You should call him tonight since it will be nice and quiet here."

Caroline nodded and waved as she watched Elena walk away. She took her phone and scrolled through her contact list to the name she was looking for.

_ Hi, if you're not busy tonight, can I call you?_

* * *

_**NOTES:**_

_So what do you think? Any guesses? Love to hear from you. _

_Until next time!_

_XO~ sushi_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Thank you for the reviews and alerts :). I'm glad y'all are enjoying the story so far. Of course, the story probably wouldn't look half as good without my awesome team of prereaders and beta—darknnerdy, hannahperry85 (happy birthday!), kjsama and the amazing cecevolume. **_

_**I don't own the characters, they belong to their respective books/shows. I'm just having fun creating a whole new world for them. **_

_**Enjoy**_

* * *

Klaus was in his studio when he received Rebekah's text message and replied after putting some finishing touches on his latest piece. Once he was satisfied, he went next door to his room and cleaned up. He couldn't tell from the message whether or not it was good news but figured if it had been bad, Rebekah would have called screaming bloody murder.

When Klaus walked down to the main floor, he was disturbed by the sight before him. Elijah was, as usual of late, doting over the pregnant wolf girl. This time, he was catering to her as though he was her manservant, bringing a tray of food over to her as she lounged on one of the antique silk chairs as though she was a queen. Both were unaware of their audience as they were both lost in their own world. Having seen more than enough, Klaus, a scowl of disgust on his face, rushed out the door never uttering a single word.

He was a few blocks away from the warehouse when his phone vibrated with another message. Thinking it was Rebekah growing impatient, he pulled his phone out in a huff and looked at the screen, ready to send a scathing reply back to his sister.

_ Hi, if you're not busy tonight, can I call you? _

He paused as he stared at his phone in shock. His first inclination was to believe it was an illusion, but then he realized, from the sounds of the cruise ship tourists nearby and the smells from the Mississippi River, he wasn't dreaming and it was indeed real. Smiling, he typed out a message to her.

_ How about I call you tonight?_

Her response came less than a minute later.

_ Okay, I'm just going to have some 'me' time so call me whenever._

He wasn't sure what exactly that entailed, but figured he'd have an opportunity to ask later.

_ I'll speak to you later, Caroline._

He looked at the time and noted there were still hours before he could find time to talk to Caroline. Klaus took a moment and moved away from the road to gather his thoughts— he was looking forward to tonight but there was more to it. It wasn't _just _the anticipation he was feeling, like the 'date' they had for the Miss Mystic Falls competition. He was truly happy that she reached out to him on her own.

As much as he wanted to think about Caroline and their phone call though, the first thing he needed to do was meet his sister. He powered down his phone and quickly put on his stoic mask of indifference as he continued to walk towards the warehouse. He paid zero attention to the scenery as he usually did; ignoring the old buildings and the iron trellises that had withstood time and natural disasters. Instead, he used the time to clear the lingering thoughts about Caroline Forbes and began wondering about Rebekah's news— hoping it was positive.

"There you are, Nik!" Rebekah said irritably as soon as he shut the metal door for privacy.

He walked over to where Rebekah was sitting, noting there was some sort of fabric covering the dirty chairs. "I was painting, little sister," he replied, sounding put off for being disturbed. "I take it you have news?"

"Aria called and she agreed to help us," Rebekah announced and waited for her brother's reaction.

"Aria… remind me how you know her?" he asked. He made sure he looked bored as he began walking around the warehouse, almost casually, as though he was inside a museum. He didn't want to appear relieved or show any emotion at all.

She scowled realizing he wasn't as excited or relieved as she was. "I saved her great grandparents here in New Orleans nearly a century ago. A robber who was about to harm them. They were tourists and had gotten lost when they were confronted. Something about them moved me and I pulled the hooligan away. They were grateful I saved them and I managed to have a meal after they left."

"Ah yes, I remember," he replied, nodding his head slightly. He continued pacing, the circle having grown smaller. "It was 1914. The ruffian had taken his wallet and was about to resort to violence. She was with child, yes?"

The younger Mikaelson nodded, not understanding why her brother was asking so many questions. It reminded her of a court hearing; the only thing missing on her brother was a barrister wig. "The grandmother…they named her Rebecca, though she went by her nickname Evie, short for Evelyn. She was a witch."

"She was named after you?" Looking very much like the evil hybrid he was known to be, he turned around suddenly, glaring at his sister. Before she could respond, he continued. "But what about this Aria? What do you know about her?" The muscles on his body tensed and his casual pacing now resembled a ruthless predator on the hunt.

"Her mother never had the gift of magic, but Aria inherited the gift and was taught by her grandmother," Rebekah rattled off. "Her name is Aria Mubarak; her father's of Egyptian descent."

She began to feel defensive as her brother continued to move about like a caged tiger. She was also a little worried that he might have discovered something she had overlooked. Quickly dismissing the idea that something was amiss, she sat up straighter and told herself to remain confident as she waited for another barrage of questions from him.

"Very well, little sister," Klaus replied with a smirk. He had purposely tried to intimidate his sister as a test of her fortitude. He also figured, if this was some grand scheme she hatched up to betray him, she would have reacted differently. He was certain, if she was deceiving him in some manner, she would have revealed _something_ during his antics. Instead, she was nervous, but remained calm and defended herself. "So when is she coming here?"

"She isn't," Rebekah blurted out as she anticipated more questions. "She wants to meet first at a neutral location and I suggested Atlanta."

"Hmm," Klaus murmured as he finally stopped moving. "That's actually not a bad idea given how witches are barred from doing any magic here."

"She has someone working with her, too, Nik."

Klaus was not pleased about the news. One witch was trouble enough, but _two_? "Very well. When do _we_ meet with them and where?"

"We?" she asked, certain he would have put up a fuss about meeting with a witch. She kept her face impassive in case he changed his mind.

"Surely you don't expect me to send you on your own to face a couple of witches?" He remarked with a smirk. As much as he'd rather pursue this situation on his own, Rebekah had, thus far, proven herself useful. He wasn't about to be lulled into thinking she wasn't above treachery; he knew and expected she would turn on him at some point and usually it was due to circumstances not going her way. Still, he reasoned, it was nice to work with someone, for now.

Rebekah nodded reluctantly knowing he wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. "Fine, but don't do anything stupid," she replied flippantly. "This might be our only chance in saving Elijah as well as figuring out what the hell is going on here with these witches."

"Don't worry, Rebekah. I have no intention of sabotaging the meeting. However, if they try anything, _anything_ to put us in danger, I won't hesitate to resort to violence."

Rebekah ignored his comment but internally, she agreed to his 'reasoning'. "We're meeting them in a week. She asked that I text the details to her."

Klaus thought for a moment. He didn't want to be _too_ far from New Orleans and the witch requested a neutral spot. He moved to the chair next to hers and sat down. "Atlanta was a good choice, little sister. Kol had a place there, didn't he?"

Rebekah nodded and looked down on the floor at the mention of their brother. "He told me he found an old building, just outside the city limits. It had been a factory of sorts and he kept the façade. Inside, he was going..." she paused knowing those were the last plans of Kol's. "He was going to transform it so it was livable."

Klaus also stared at the floor, the vision of his brother burning inside the Gilbert house forever etched in his brain. "I remember he mentioned it one of the first nights he returned to Mystic Falls," he murmured, solemnly. "We had been drinking and he mentioned something about wanting some of my paintings to adorn his new 'bachelor pad', as he called it."

"Knowing him, it would have been his den of iniquity," Rebekah scoffed. She looked over at her brother, her face serious once again. "You know, it could be a good excuse in case Elijah asked. We never went there to clear his belongings."

"It's a good idea. Maybe we can even use the excuse of providing a place for the _gir—_ for Hayley." He gritted the name out as though it was bitter poison.

"We won't use that excuse unless he presses us," Rebekah suggested, sensing her brother's unease. "I am not sure what the condition of the old factory is so maybe we should look at it before we finalize the plans?" She pulled her phone out and was about to send the message.

"Wait," Klaus said as he placed a hand over her and her phone. Rebekah looked at him with confusion. "Let's wait a couple days—perhaps after the weekend, before we send her the information. She might have agreed to help our cause, but I'd be more comfortable if we kept an advantage, however slight, in our favor."

**~Whitmore College~**

_Caroline spent most of the day straightening up the dorm room, clearing the empty liquor bottles and leftover food from the night before. All the while, Tyler kept sending her text messages until finally she had enough and replied with the same message as before. This time adding: _

_ When I'm ready to talk to you. *I* WILL contact you. _

As sad as she was with Elena leaving, she was also excited for things to come—her mom was coming up tomorrow to spend the night and then next week, she was going on a road trip with Bonnie.

Of course, tonight she was going to talk to Klaus and maybe get his take on this whole baby thing. Up until now, the news had been hearsay—basically coming from Tyler, who didn't really have high opinions of Klaus. Was she prepared to hear the news if it really was his? _How did he really feel about it? _More importantly, _how did she?_ She was nervous, for sure, knowing this had the potential of being a serious conversation. She needed to know though, before she invested feelings she should or shouldn't be having for a man with a child on the way.

That wasn't to say she _wasn't_ a little excited about talking to him as well. As much as she often dismissed him as though he was a plague, deep down, she enjoyed listening to his voice. Tonight, she'd have that opportunity once again, not just hearing his voicemail either. She kept telling herself not to judge him for his… _whatever it was with whoever she_ was.

_After cleaning the bathroom, she went to make Elena's bed and spotted a note under the pillow addressed to her in Elena's flowery handwriting. Caroline set the letter on her side of the bed and finished her task before grabbing a blood bag and reading the note. _

_Hey Care,_

_Thank you for being such a good friend over the years. I know I was an evil bitch last summer and I'm glad we were able to move past that. I am not going to say goodbye to you because as vampires, we have lifetimes ahead of us. _

_Like I said before, we'll keep in touch and I promise not to disappear off the face of the earth. _

_Stay strong, Caroline. That is the thing I've always admired and was sometimes envious of. _

_XOXO_

_Elena_

_PS - I won't cancel the Netflix account. It's charged to the Salvatores anyway. ;)_

It was a short note and the last part made Caroline laugh. As she continued to read it a few times, tears started to fall. She realized this was part of growing up and, one day, there was bound to be real goodbyes with some of her other friends, like Matt. She sniffled and wiped the tears off her eyes as she flattened out the letter and went into the closet, pulling a large jewelry box.

Feeling nostalgic, she brought it to her bed and began to look through some of her prized possessions— a bright green, plastic ring her dad had gotten her at the fair when she was younger, a dried rose from her Miss Mystic Falls pageant and the diamond bracelet from Klaus. There were also pictures of her parents and friends from over the years among the mismatched items. She set Elena's note amongst them and pressed a hidden latch on the side, revealing a false bottom. She carefully pulled the charcoal drawing and traced the lines lightly with her fingertips. Ever since Tyler had almost torn the sketch in his fit of jealousy, she had kept it safe and, at the time, her reasoning was that the drawing was just beautiful to throw away. Now, it meant a little more and she was glad she kept it all this time.

Now as she sat on her bed and looked at the drawing, Caroline saw the man who drew the picture. The same man she was out in the woods with; the man she could now admit to herself and her closest friends that she liked and maybe one day, it would be more than like. She told herself, as she put her treasures away, that she wasn't going to rush things and fall for him immediately. Other than a few stories, she really didn't know him at all and felt as though it really wouldn't hurt to get to know him better.

Feeling in better spirits, she threw her blood bag into the trash and walked to the student center to grab some food. On her way, she figured she was going to watch some movies tonight while she waited to talk to Klaus.

After grabbing a burger, fries and a soda, she sat down and had her meal contemplating her movie list for the night. By the time she got back to her dorm she decided to start with an action movie. While most people knew Caroline as a huge fan of romantic-comedies, she did have a secret love for action packed flicks.

Just when Christian Bale's Bruce Wayne was trying to, once again, climb out of his prison, the phone rang.

"Hello,"she answered never taking her eyes off the TV.

"_Hello Caroline."_

Her heart thudded as she heard the rich tenor of his voice through the phone. She put her finger over the small speaker as she took some calming breaths before placing the phone on mute. Her tummy was doing funny, fluttering things as though she was a giddy school girl. _Calm down, Caroline—it's just a phone call,_ she chided herself before wiping one hand and then the other on her comforter. Finally feeling calm enough to respond, she unmuted her phone. "Klaus," she whispered, smiling as she praised herself for sounding calmer than she really was. She was glad he wasn't there in front of her because she _knew_ she was blushing profusely at this point.

"_Am I interrupting? I could call later."_

"No!"Caroline reached for the remote at the foot of her bed and stopped the movie. "I was just watching 'The Dark Knight Rises'. I'll finish it later."

"_I didn't know you were a fan of Batman." _

Caroline could practically see him smiling when he said that.

"You probably thought I just watched romantic comedies," she said, practically beaming with happiness, as she stacked her pillows against her headboard and sat back.

"_I do recall you enjoyed movies like the 'DaVinci Code'." _

"I…" Caroline began. She was about to say something about the Hunter's Sword but then remembered why he had been trapped in the Gilbert's house in the first place.

"_What exactly is 'me' time for Caroline Forbes?"_ he asked as if he sensed her unease.

"Well, you know I live in a dorm with Elena and Bonnie," she began. "Being an only child and having a workaholic mom, I sometimes like the quiet. Not always, but it is nice to give yourself that time to do whatever you want. You must have something like that, right?" She grimaced and wondered if she making any sense or just rambling. _Oh my god, Caroline, you probably sound like an idiot right now. You're just talking to a friend! _

"_I suppose my alone time is when I spend time painting," _Klaus replied.

Caroline smiled as she remembered some of the artwork he showed her during the Mikaelson's family ball. "So, how are you and New Orleans?"

"_I'm doing well, though there have been some unexpected situations that have slightly tarnished my views of the city._"

"I'm sorry," Caroline replied softly. She recalled a voicemail he left her and how happy he sounded as he talked about one of his favorite cities. If she ventured a guess based on his vague response, he wasn't ready to open up, on his own. "I might have heard something about it."

"_What did you hear?"_ Klaus asked, his voice sounding strained over the phone.

"Bonnie and Elena… they were there when Tyler said something…" Caroline began, stumbling over the right words. "You and a baby?"

There was a rustle of noise followed by a loud _"Bollocks!"_ Even though Caroline was far away, she still flinched at his angry outburst. She was about to yell at him on the phone but heard heavy breathing. She hoped he was trying to remain calm, the last thing she wanted was to piss him off.

"_Caroline…_" he began.

"So it's true? How?" she whispered. Disappointment washed over her as she realized the rumor was true—not that she wanted to have children right this moment even if she was able to. As much as it hurt, she _had_ to hear it first hand, she reminded herself.

"_I don't know," _Klaus said quietly, almost defeated or exhausted—she wasn't sure which, it just didn't sound like his usual self._ "According to the witches, it is some sort of loophole. Or, as they call it, nature's loophole because I carry the werewolf gene. Rebekah believes it might be a situation conjured by witches." _

"And the mother?" Caroline asked and hated that she was asking but she felt it was the polite thing to do. She was also hoping Rebekah was right in her assumptions.

"_She's a werewolf… Tyler Lockwood's friend. The brunette."_

"_Hayley_ is the mother?" Caroline blurted, spitting the name out like a curse. She sat straight up on the bed. "Why her?!"

"_It was nothing more than a liquor fueled one night stand, although it was less than an hour. It was nothing," _Klaus repeated and sighed. _"It was supposed to be nothing,"_ he said, his voice even softer than before.

There was silence as Caroline tried to process his words. She knew he had become angry when she first mentioned she knew his predicament. Now, she could tell he was feeling something else.

"Would you be okay if it turned out to be a trick?"

"_I can live with that,"_ Klaus replied. _"I can't get my hopes up, though. As it is, I keep a wide breadth from her. If it weren't for Elijah fawning over the wolf-girl, she would be living elsewhere."_

Caroline winced knowing Hayley was living with them, but quickly dismissed it given how Klaus so obviously felt about her. "Do you regret it?" she asked. Even though she was asking about the werewolf, a part of her was also asking the question about _them_.

"_Yes, it is as though I'm now serving some sort of penance for my sins,"_ Klaus confessed and added a scoff. _"It was nothing more than quick fuck. Literally, excuse my vulgarity." _

Caroline was taken aback by the hate seething from his words. Even though she wasn't right there with him, she could tell and was grateful she wasn't the one those words were aimed at. She didn't want to ask, but since they were talking she _had_ to know, however painful the answer might be. "What about the woods? Us?"

"_What?!"_ Klaus exclaimed. He let out a growl of anger. _"No, I do not, Caroline. Do you? Do you regret it?"_

"I don't," she replied, almost immediately. She was relieved he didn't have second thoughts about what they did.

"_I do need to confess something, however. I wouldn't call it regret, but I wished our time together was longer. I would have wanted to ravage you on one-thousand count, Egyptian cotton sheets, maybe have you pressed up against a shower wall. Then, maybe bend you over a table and take you that way. I would have wanted more than a few hours, if I could."_

There was silence as Caroline closed her eyes and imagined everything he just described. Her body was already reacting and she let out a soft moan. She shut her eyes and imagined his hands on her once more. "What if I wanted to pin your hands down and ravaged you?" her voice was softer and huskier now.

"_Oh love, I bet you'd look magnificent. As I recall, even with leaves stuck in your hair, you were already a vision." _

"Klaus," she began with a whisper. She was playing with fire by talking to him in the first place. Now she was going to explode like a supernova if they continued their phone sex.

"_Caroline, I must apologize, I didn't mean to take the conversation in that direction. I merely wanted to explain myself, not assume that we'd have intercourse over the phone." _

Caroline couldn't help but laugh at Klaus' misuse of words. "Phone sex," she explained. "That's the term."

Klaus chuckled on the other end. _"If you couldn't tell, it was my first time I've had to use the word,"_ he joked.

"What is it that they say?" Caroline asked rhetorically, happy that they were able to sidestep _that_ part of the conversation and things were once again lighthearted. "You're a cheeky bastard!" She even tried, unsuccessfully to mimic a British accent to get the point across.

"_Oh, sweetheart, that was a terrible accent!" _he teased.

The two continued to laugh before Klaus spoke again. "_So all of Mystic Falls know by now, I gather,"_ Klaus said.

"Other than Bonnie, Elena, and my mom, I haven't really spent time talking to them," Caroline confessed, knowing he was referring to the baby news. "From what Bonnie said, Tyler was being a dick when he announced it."

"_So you weren't there?"_

"No, after I got to the boarding house, I stayed for a few minutes and then Tyler arrived," Caroline began, blushing from the memories. "I… I sort of got a little paranoid that someone would catch onto the fact I had been gone most of the day, so I left and drove back to my dorm. What about Rebekah? Did she say anything about where you were?"

"_She was able to deduce that I saw you,"_ Klaus replied. _"I didn't elaborate more on that, nor would I have if she asked." _

Caroline decided that since the conversation had been pleasant so far, it wouldn't hurt to tell him more. "I sort of freaked out when Bonnie and Elena told me about the news… your news. I told them about us in the woods."

The phone was silent for a moment. "_And?_" he asked.

"They support me and want me to be happy," Caroline explained as she began playing with her necklace. "I know, it's shocking, right? Because it sure surprised the hell out of me. They're not necessarily on Team Klaus yet, but they support me with my decisions."

"_It sounds like being away from Mystic Falls has done them some good._

Caroline could imagine that infamous smirk of his. "Yeah, it's like we're growing up." She then told Klaus about Elena and how she encouraged her to speak to him. She didn't elaborate how her friend now had Katherine's conscience. "Yeah, so she's going to talk to the Salvatores and then she wants to go discover herself," Caroline explained.

"_I suppose the Salvatore brothers won't be pleased with her decision. I'm willing to bet they will eventually run off to find her."_

"I wouldn't be surprised either," Caroline admitted. "I guess we'll see, right?"

"_Well, sweetheart, it is getting late, and I know you probably want to finish your movie. Perhaps we can talk another time? You're always welcome to text, as well,"_ Klaus said.

"Okay. It was really good to talk to you tonight," she said with all honesty. "Good night, Klaus. I hope things start to look up for you."

"_Thank you, Caroline. Pleasant dreams to you as well." _

When the call ended, Caroline sat on her bed, glad she had the nerve to initiate the phone call. She grabbed her pillow and hugged it tightly as she thought about the idea of Klaus with _her_. It hurt to know the rumors had been true but it hurt even more that it was with Hayley—she still hadn't forgotten how the werewolf snapped her neck right before the hybrids were sacrificed. He was honest, though, and that meant something. Or rather, it meant a lot to her that he opened up. She grabbed the remote and switched the movie back on deciding the next one was definitely going to be a romantic comedy.

**~Louisiana~**

Klaus leaned up against the hood of his car as he stared across the black water towards New Orleans. He had just ended his phone call with Caroline and wanted a few moments to reflect before heading back to the city. His decision to find a quiet place to call was definitely a wise one, he thought.

_After feeding on a couple vagrants, he had thought about going back home to call her, but decided not to; his siblings would undoubtedly hear their conversation and he didn't need Rebekah taunting him or Elijah… Who knew what his older brother would think. Going somewhere in the city wasn't a good choice either, since the minions were around and word might get back to Marcel of a possible weakness that could be exploited. Instead, he drove across the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway and found a deserted spot along the shore facing New Orleans. _

As he stared at the lake and the only reflection from the half moon above, he thought about how he first reacted when he discovered Caroline knew about the baby. He was ready to hunt down the Lockwood whelp and rip entrails out; piece by painful piece, before finally tearing his heart and watching him die before his very eyes. She managed to surprise him with her reaction to the girl's name. _Was it jealousy?_ He was certain it was or, rather, he _hoped_ it was as he pushed himself off his car and started gathering a handful of small rocks— tossing them so they skipped along the water.

When she asked whether or not he regretted _their_ time out in the woods, he truly believed she was hoping he would, as a means of avoiding any guilt she might have had. That had been her basic modus operandi, so he _expected_ her to admit it was a mistake. As painful as it would have been to hear, he turned the tables and asked if she regretted their rendezvous. When she admitted she didn't, he felt as though some of his stress left his body.

He hadn't expected that their conversation would turn into something more. He hadn't meant to seduce her over the phone. He'd begun to harden when he heard her soft moan and when she taunted him, he had to lean his forehead on the steering wheel as he begged the ancient gods for mercy. Lucky for him, his faux pas was an ice breaker and the rest of the call was lighthearted and pleasant.

Feeling inspired, he got in his car and headed back to New Orleans. He figured he'd stop in at Rousseau's just to wreak a little havoc on Marcel and his merry band of misfits. Then, upon returning home and taking a cold shower, he planned to spend the rest of his night painting.

* * *

_**NOTES **_

_What did you think? _

_I totally imagined Klaus being paranoid about the possibility his sister was going to double-cross him at some point. I also pictured him nervous and maybe even uncomfortable with Caroline—that any minute she'll change her mind about him and walk away. Because that was what was pretty much instilled on him all those years and centuries. _

_If you have questions or comments, let me know. I usually reply to them right before the next chapter goes up. :)_

_Until next time! ~ sushi_


	6. Chapter 6

_**It's been a crazy, busy past few weeks—sorry for the lack of updates. Sometimes real life really gets in the way with the fun things. :) Like tonight for example—I was going to update this about 2 hours ago but lost power and then had a couple freaky power surges in the hood—seriously, it was like a freaking sci-fi movie! :-/**_

_**In case you didn't notice, I also changed my pen name a little from Sushi loves Whitlock to catslovesushi. It's a little more generic than the previous name. I'm still me though. :P **_

_**Thank you to my wonderful team for making this look really pretty -**__** hannahperry85, kjsama and the amazing cecevolume. **_

_**Enough of the craziness. Here we go! **_

_**As always, I don't own the characters—they belong to their respective shows and books. I'm just having a little fun with them.**_

* * *

Caroline spent Saturday and most of Sunday with her mom, a rarity for her since Liz was always working. Given that this weekend had been planned for a while and actually required Liz to take time off to visit, it was a relaxing time for mother and daughter. They ate at one of the local restaurants and stayed up late watching movies. The next morning, they had brunch and then walked around campus.

As they neared the old Main building, Liz stopped and looked at her daughter. "Honey, what's going on between you and Tyler?" Liz asked with concern.

"What do you mean?" Caroline asked innocently.

Liz gave her a knowing look that she didn't buy the innocent look. "He's come over a couple times and asked when you were coming back to town. I thought you two broke up?"

"We did," Caroline replied. "He changed his mind about wanting to break up, apparently."

"Caroline, I hope you're not going to run back to him because he can't make up his mind," her mother said sternly. "If you are planning to, do it on your terms, not his."

Caroline appreciated her mom's concern. She could almost imagine her mom was taking a life experience of her own to share with her daughter.

"I don't want to," Caroline admitted.

"Good," Liz continued. "It can only bring nothing but resentment for both of you." Liz looked over at her daughter, noticing the slight wrinkle on her forehead and how she was biting her lip. "It's not your father—just a little thing with a boy… a long time ago," she replied, giving a reassuring hug to Caroline. "I just wanted to give you some motherly advice."

The subtle change in subject was a clue for Caroline not to ask about the mysterious boy. "You're right," she replied. "I have been avoiding him because I want to make the right decision before talking to him."

Liz pulled Caroline into another hug as they continued walk around campus. "So when are you coming back home?"

"I'm not sure," Caroline said. "Bonnie and I are planning a road trip next weekend. It's sort of a girl thing. So maybe the weekend after?"

"Just let me know when so I can take at least one of the days off to spend with you," Liz replied and looked at her watch. "You and Bonnie?" Liz asked. "What about Elena?"

Caroline explained that Elena wanted some time to herself and maybe travel. Just as she had done when she talked to Klaus, she left the whole 'transfer of conscience' out. It was bad enough her mom was subjected to so much supernatural stuff, so she figured there was no harm leaving that part out. Besides, she reasoned, it was a personal thing for Elena and she didn't feel right talking about it to others.

"I suppose that makes sense given everything that girl's gone through." Her mom looked at her watch again and sighed. "Shoot, I should head back home. I'm sorry, Caroline, I have the overnight shift, so I want to grab a nap beforehand."

Caroline nodded and together they walked back to her dorm room and helped her mom pack her things.

About an hour after Liz left, Bonnie came back. Caroline could tell she had been crying and immediately went over to give her friend a hug.

"She left," Bonnie muttered as she tried to stifle her tears.

"I know," Caroline replied, now feeling misty eyed herself. She reached over to grab some Kleenex and handed the box to Bonnie, leading her over to her bed. "She told me on Friday."

"I guess it's sort of normal, right?" Bonnie asked as she wiped her eyes. "I mean, it just so happened we stayed together to go to college but it doesn't always end that way, after high school."

Caroline shook her head and turned to face her friend. "I guess this is another one of those 'growing up' things. At least she's just going to travel and find herself. It was a lot worse when we found out you had died."

Bonnie shivered at the memories of that moment when she saw her own corpse lying on the ground. "I could see you all but couldn't do or say any damn thing about it. I guess when you put it in that perspective, it doesn't hurt as much."

"Only in Mystic Falls, right?"

Bonnie chuckled and nodded. "Okay, enough of the sad talk. Are you looking forward to Atlanta?"

"Oh my god, yes!" Caroline exclaimed. "So what are we going to do?"

Bonnie explained the reason why they were headed there, beginning with meeting Aria.

"Whoa, her family served the Pharaohs?" Caroline said, shocked and impressed with the news. "So what else happened?"

"I think she helped me get in contact with Grams," Bonnie said. "You know how I had been trying to get a hold of her but hadn't. Well, Aria and I went to a nearby park, I sat down and focused on Grams, and before I knew it, she appeared. She basically told me that I could trust Aria and she could undo the imbalance that's occurring in New Orleans. She did tell me Aria's magic is unorthodox but it wasn't necessarily bad, like Expression was."

"So you're okay with trusting the Originals?" Caroline asked, knowing Bonnie's dislike of vampires that weren't her childhood friends.

"I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea, to be honest. I think that's why Grams said you should go with me when we meet with Rebekah."

"She did?" Caroline asked and wondered to herself why they would want her there.

"Oh no!" Caroline suddenly exclaimed as she stood up, shaking her head. "I'm not going to be some sort of Klaus bait for witches, Bonnie."

"Care, it's not—"

"NO!" Caroline yelled, her hands at her hips as she glared at her friend. "I _hate_ being a distraction for him. I can't Bonnie, I can't and I won't." It hurt knowing her friend only wanted her along so she could be some sort of pawn. She knew Damon never had any qualms about it, but Bonnie? Caroline was trying not to break down in tears.

Bonnie sensed her friend's distress and held up her hands in an attempt to show she wasn't trying to hurt her. "Care, you're not bait," she replied firmly and waited until Caroline relaxed from her defensive posture.

It took a minute or so of intense staring before Caroline's hands dropped and she moved to sit on her own bed. "Okay, talk." She brought her knees up and hugged them as she waited for Bonnie to continue her explanation.

"I don't have any intention of making you some sort of lure for Klaus," Bonnie began, moving to Elena's bed so she could be closer to Caroline. "Hell, I don't even know if he'll even be there! Even if he was, I wouldn't put you in that situation; I'm not Damon."

Caroline rested her chin on her knees as she contemplated the words. Bonnie had an excellent point—she wasn't Damon and he wasn't even a part of this situation. A part of her felt bad for reacting so strongly against her best friend. It was hard for her to _not_ feel as though there was an ulterior motive for going on this mini vacation given all that has happened in their lives. _Was it even __considered__ a vacation?_ She turned to look at her friend. "Why Atlanta?" It was all she could ask. She hoped Bonnie would understand she was starting to feel a little insecure and could easily revert back to human Caroline.

Bonnie gave her a small, reassuring smile. "I wanted my friend there to support me. I don't know Aria except for that meeting we had. If you're there, I would feel a little more at ease."

"If there's danger, I can't fight Rebekah," Caroline said as she moved to sit cross legged. "Do I need to be there when you meet with her?"

Bonnie shrugged and copied Caroline's movements. "I am not forcing you, Care. If you want to just come along for the road trip, I'd like that too."

"So where are we staying?" Caroline asked.

"Not sure," Bonnie replied. "Aria said something about staying at her dad's place and that there was plenty of room."

"Um, Bonnie? What if I can't walk in there? Are you sure we can trust her?"

Bonnie looked at her friend. Anybody else would have thought Caroline was being unreasonably paranoid but she knew better. Her friend had not only been used as bait, but she had also been tortured by her father, werewolves, and hybrids. "Well, maybe we get a hotel room nearby?" she suggested.

"We might want to think about it. I mean, what if she has a grand plan to stake me or something? _That_ would suck." Caroline looked down on her bedspread and started tracing some random design with her finger. "No, forget it… I'm just overreacting." Caroline knew she was probably being completely irrational as soon as Bonnie gave her more details about their upcoming road trip.

She was pissed off at first when she thought she was being used, but it subsided when her friend explained the situation and how Klaus might not even show up. For a moment, she felt sad and disappointed that she wouldn't see him and _that_ was what disturbed her the most. She still wanted to take her time and figure life out, it seemed the more she tried to make plans for her future, the more unsure she seemed to be.

"No, we can get a hotel if we need to; my dad left a trust in my name, so it would be my treat," Bonnie replied and noticed Caroline still looked preoccupied. "Is everything okay, Care?" She reached over and gave her friend a little shake.

"Huh?" Caroline remarked and then blushed when she realized she had zoned out. "Oh, I was just thinking."

"I think you were on a different planet," Bonnie joked before looking serious again. "Is something bothering you?"

Caroline chewed her bottom lip as she quickly debated whether to talk to Bonnie about Klaus and the fact _they_ talked the night before. Could she trust Bonnie not to judge her? She looked up at Bonnie and took a deep breath as she realized she _needed_ to confide in someone.

"Sort of," Caroline mumbled. "Klaus and I talked last night and it was nice." She paused as she expected Bonnie to say something, but she just nodded as if to encourage her to continue. "We talked about the baby and he explained it was with Hayley."

"Hayley?" Bonnie asked, her eyes wide with shock. "Tyler's friend, Hayley? The one you said wore a super short, red dress to the Miss Mystic Falls pageant?"

"The one and only," Caroline replied cynically, adding a roll of her eyes for effect. "He said what happened was supposed to have been nothing but meaningless sex. Somehow, it became more, or as he called it, a loophole and his hands seem tied. He also said Rebekah has a theory that it could be some sort of witch curse or whatever, but there's no proof." She looked over at Bonnie. "Oh, do you think that is the imbalance in New Orleans?"

"It could be," Bonnie admitted. "Though, I think for an Original to ask for a witch to help them, it has to be more than that. There must be a bigger picture there. So you talked about the supposed baby. And?"

Caroline shrugged. She definitely didn't want to talk about their _almost_ phone sex. "Um, it was more the _way_ we talked than what we talked about. Other than when I asked about the baby and he sort got pissed off. I mean he was livid. But then… after that things were just pleasant. I don't know how to explain it."

"Sounds like you had a normal conversation with him without any pretense."

"Yeah," Caroline replied and blushed. "It wasn't so I could ask for some sort of favor either. It was just _nice_."

Caroline thought back at one of the most intense conversations they ever had. It was back when Silas was, as Damon liked to describe it, 'mindfucking' everybody. Caroline had admonished Klaus that day as she tried to explain what it meant to be friends. _What is wrong with you?! I am reaching out to you, despite everything that you've done and you still can't get out of your own way! _And then later, when she told him she should have turned her back on him, she saw the hurt in his eyes.

If she were to compare last night's call to that moment in his mansion, Caroline believed he did take her words to heart and that meant a lot to her. Not only did he give up his need to seek revenge on Katherine Pierce after five centuries of their cat and mouse game, he did it for her. The idea warmed her heart. Was he really capable of making changes in his life because of her influence? He did, after all, come out and save not just her but the whole Mystic Falls gang during graduation.

"You're day dreaming again," Bonnie joked, once again pulling Caroline away from her thoughts.

"Sorry," Caroline replied sheepishly. "I was just thinking about the way we talked and it was a bit of an eye opener."

"Hey, are you going to talk to him before our trip?"

"I hadn't planned on it," Caroline said. "Why?"

"As I told Aria, I just don't want them to know right away that I'm helping her," Bonnie explained.

"I didn't even mention going to Atlanta," Caroline replied. "Not that I knew that was the reason why we were going. What did you tell Jeremy?"

"I told him we were having a girls weekend. He was cool about it. If we have time, I do want to pick up some college catalogs for him though."

"He wants to move to Georgia?"

I think it's more like he wants to get out of Mystic Falls," Bonnie clarified before getting up and grabbing one of her text books. "Have you studied for our quiz?"

Caroline shook her head. "Not really," she laughed even harder when Bonnie looked at her in shock. "Stop, don't look at me like I just turned into a unicorn or something, I was busy this whole weekend!"

**~New Orleans~**

"Nik, surely you don't expect your baby to live here once she's born, do you?" Rebekah asked innocently, as all three siblings gathered for breakfast. She reached and grabbed a scone and some fruit before she settled back in her seat.

"Bekah, where the girl lives is none of my affair," Klaus replied and narrowed his eyes at his sister. "She can go back to the bayou for all I care." He went back to cutting his piece of ham and appeared to ignore his sister's antics.

Rebekah glared back and was about to say something when Elijah started to shake his newspaper to show his annoyance with his siblings. To prove a point, he brought the paper up and blocked them from his view. Rebekah looked over at Klaus and tried not to laugh before giving him a mischievous wink.

"But Nik, we're not talking about the girl, we're talking about your own flesh and blood—your child!" Rebekah pleaded and probably would have wobbled her lip a bit if Elijah had been watching.

Klaus shook his head and fought his laughter for a brief second before he let out a low growl. "Watch yourself, little sister. You're being insolent again."

"Will you two _stop_ your incessant bickering?!" Elijah exclaimed as he slammed the paper down on the table, causing the dishes to shake. "Perhaps Rebekah has a point. With you two arguing and snapping at each other, I am certain this is not an enriching environment for the child." He glared at his younger siblings, shaking his head in disappointment. "Maybe you should look into providing Hayley with a proper home."

"Surely I'm not hearing correctly, brother," Klaus mocked. "You're permitting the wolf and her cub to live away from us?"

Elijah rolled his eyes and finished the rest of his coffee before getting up. He grabbed a breakfast type tray and started to plate some food without saying another word to his siblings. Before he walked away from their dining room, he turned. "I'm disappointed in both of you. Your behavior is absolutely atrocious." He walked out the room and it sounded as though he was headed to Hayley's living quarters.

Once he was certain they were away from their older brother's hearing, Klaus scoffed and propped his feet up on Elijah's chair. "I think that went well," he whispered.

Rebekah nodded and finished off her scone. "I think if we continue this, the rest of the week, it will make a good excuse when we leave for the long weekend."

"It would be nice to get away," Klaus admitted.

"Our manservant of a brother is clearly not himself and it is becoming more and more disturbing," Rebekah muttered with disgust. She looked over at Klaus and motioned towards the front door. "Let the nanny take care of it."

Klaus nearly choked on his tea over his sister's words and quickly flashed out the door. A moment later, Rebekah followed and together they walked towards his car.

"Do what you want, Rebekah, I don't care. If you want to do this so-called 'baby proofing' of the house, so be it, but don't expect me to be a part of it," Klaus said through clenched teeth. They were walking right under Hayley's rooms and Klaus wanted to be just loud enough for his brother to hear.

"Whatever, Nik," Rebekah replied irritably. "Just take me shopping like you promised."

Once they were in the car and out the driveway, they were free to drop their façade and actually started howling out in laughter.

"I can't believe you referred to him as a nanny," Klaus said as he drove around. "Anywhere in particular?"

"No, I am going to do my shopping when we're in Atlanta. It's not like the Avenue des Champs-Élysèes, but it will do in a pinch. I just wanted to get out of the house," Rebekah admitted. "Let's just go somewhere quiet."

"Surely our dear brother will wonder when we return and you don't have any shopping bags," Klaus remarked as he took the interstate and headed towards Baton Rouge.

"Fine, we'll find some mediocre toy store and I'll buy a baby toy. That ought to placate Elijah."

"I'll be happy when we can stop with the charade. It's one thing to harass Marcel, it's different when it's become obvious our brother is no longer himself," Klaus said. It was probably the closest thing to admitting he missed Elijah. Sure, they had their differences over the centuries and his older brother brother had seen the inside of a coffin often because they didn't always see eye to eye, but this was not the same. It was almost as though his older brother was an entirely different person now and he didn't like this new version one bit. Elijah always touted himself to be the voice of reason or sometimes, his conscience—the moral compass. Now, he seemed too caught up with the wolf-girl's plight and have almost distanced himself, at least emotionally, from his siblings.

Rebekah, understanding the meaning behind his words, simply nodded. "I hope we get answers this weekend."

"I supposed after our performance over breakfast, we'll have to make it look as though we're looking for a proper home for the girl?"

"Perhaps not," Rebekah said as she stared out the window. There was a momentary silence before Rebekah turned to look at her brother with an evil gleam in her eye. "Maybe there's a way we can infuriate him enough so he won't question our absence."

"You have an idea?" Klaus asked as he left the interstate and drove around some of the more remote areas of Louisiana.

"I can't let you in, but it will happen in the next day or so. Just play along, Nik," she replied.

Klaus noticed the pleading looking on his sister's eyes before she quickly masked it with indifference. He wasn't sure what her plan was to raise the ire of their older brother, but he was game.

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_**Did you like it? I know, it's a slight filler chapter but I needed it to set the stage up before both groups left for Atlanta. **_

_**As always, I love to hearing your thoughts on this. Let me know. **_

_**Until next time, XO~ sushi**_


	7. Chapter 7

**Here's the next chapter! Hope you enjoy :). Thank you hannahperry85 and cecevolume for their work on making this chapter look nice. **

**As a reminder, this is alternate universe so some of the names I'll use in this story are similar to names in The Originals but that's as far as it goes.**

**I don't own the characters, they belong to their respective shows.**

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"My brother Nik will be home any moment," Rebekah announced, motioning for the two humans into the house. The slightly tipsy girls giggled and followed her into the sitting room. The blonde vampire grabbed a nearby remote and once music started to flow through the room, excused herself heading to the kitchen. She grabbed a bottle of wine from the wine chiller and sent a quick text message to her brother before rifling through the refrigerator for snacks, grateful their human housekeeper had stocked up earlier that day.

Klaus arrived ten minutes later, ready to reprimand his sister for interrupting his feed. He stormed into the house and stopped momentarily when he heard pop music and the distinct sound of heartbeats. He slowly walked into the sitting room and saw two females, dressed in something Rebekah once described as 'club wear', dancing with each other. Rebekah was nowhere to be found, but she was obviously home when he spotted her favorite bottle of Bordeaux sitting on the table.

"There you are!" Rebekah exclaimed happily when she came in from the kitchen. "Nik, this is Genevieve and Tracy, they're part of a dance team over at Tulane," Rebekah said, first pointing to the redhead and then the blonde, before giving them a reproving look as they looked like they were ready to maul him. "Girls, this is my brother Nik and, like I said, he's a stage director in London. Give my brother a chance to settle down before you audition for him. In the meantime, there's more wine and a cheese platter."

"Rebekah, what is the meaning of this?" Klaus asked in a hushed, vampire whisper, while fixing himself a tumbler of bourbon.

She walked over to stand next to him. "It's supposed to be your peace offering for lashing out at you," Rebekah replied, raising her eyebrow at Klaus.

He quickly deduced it was the 'surprise' she had talked about a few days ago. He noticed the mischievous gleam in his sister's eye and nodded to show he agreed to be a part of her scheme.

She turned back and grabbed the remote, raising the volume a couple notches up. "Elijah isn't home yet; he took _her_ to dinner but, since it's near bedtime, they'll be home shortly."

Looking up quickly at the clock on the wall, he noted Rebekah was correct and Elijah would indeed be home shortly. Klaus downed the amber liquor and poured himself another helping before he took a seat facing the girls.

"So, I understand you are trying to audition for a part?" Klaus announced after taking a sip of his drink. He gave both girls a smirk, noting how their breathing and heart rates changed as they stared at him, their eyes beginning to smolder with desire. "How are you girls with dances from the 1920s? I'll be directing an original play that's similar to 'Chicago'," he explained with an extra air of arrogance. The girls hung onto his every word as they both nodded enthusiastically.

"Very well." He smiled at the humans before turning his attention to his sister. "Rebekah, do you have anything that is more era appropriate for us?" Klaus asked, continuing to play his role as a stage director.

"Of course," Rebekah replied and quickly changed the music to the more familiar big-band tunes. For a moment, Klaus was back in the speakeasies, drinking bootleg gin he helped finance.

"Whenever you're ready girls," Rebekah added sounding as though she was her brother's trusty assistant. She sat down on the small, antique settee next to her brother as they both waited for them to start.

Both girls removed their shoes and undid their hair ties before they began to dance what looked like it should have been a Charleston. Klaus gave the girls a smile even though he thought they danced atrociously. He looked over at his sister and noticed she was no longer paying attention and was rubbing her temples with her eyes shut. For a moment, Klaus took his mind back to the night of Roaring Twenties dance at Mystic Falls High School and how he danced with Caroline. _You would have liked the 1920s, Caroline. Girls were reckless, sexy…_

"Stop this," Klaus ordered, shaking his head in disapproval. He grabbed the remote to turn down Louis Armstrong. "I don't know if this play is for you two. Tell me, what kind of music would you like to audition with?"

The blonde pointed to the iPod dock. "Can we take a look?"

Klaus winced at the grating sound of her voice. His initial impression of the girl when he first walked in was that she was easy on the eyes. Once he sat down and assessed her while she danced, he realized her hair lacked shine. Her blue eyes was missing a sparkle and, instead, he noticed a slight haze in her eyes that he often found with those who were living life too much on the edge. She was wearing too much make up as well. None of those should have mattered to him—they were mere observations and she was nothing more than a human blood bag. Still, his thoughts kept a running list of all things wrong with her.

"Yeah, help yourself," Rebekah drawled and watched as the two girls began to search for songs for their 'audition'.

Moments later, electronic dance music filled the room and the lights were dimmed slightly. The girls both discarded their tops and were wearing flimsy camisoles and short skirts as they 'danced'. Klaus scrubbed his face with his hands in disgust. Whenever the girls turned to look at him, he quickly set his mask to appear interested in them grinding against each other like dogs in heat. He glared over at his sister and saw she had a similar look as his on her face.

He was about to say something when he heard a car pull up to the wrought iron gate surrounding their property and could tell, thanks to his werewolf senses, the purr of the engine was Elijah's Mercedes sedan. He caught his sister's attention and motioned with his eyes the front of the house. She gave an imperceptible nod, understanding the signal. _Showtime_, he thought as he moved to take a hold of the redhead's hand, pulling her towards him.

Genevieve took his signal that he was interested in something more as she straddled his lap and proceeded to give him a lap dance. He looked over to his sister once again and could see the other girl, Tracy, was on her lap but Rebekah was compelling her to be quiet and enjoy the rest of the evening.

Taking his sister's cue, he looked at the girl's green eyes. "You will cease your dancing and remain still. The only sounds coming from your mouth will be sounds of pleasure." Genevieve repeated the words slowly and stopped grinding on Klaus.

Klaus knew it wouldn't take any effort to bed the girl and feast on her blood. Over the ages, he never was lonely for a willing female, only resorting to compulsion to keep them from making too much noise. It would have been easy to do the same to Genevieve—especially seeing at how aroused she was becoming. He could, if he wanted to, merely shut his eyes and imagine he was back at the Ambassador Hotel during the 1930s seducing a young, Margarita Cansino, before she became the famous Hollywood starlet, Rita Hayworth.

He was lost in thought when the redhead ran her fingers down his shoulders, causing him to hiss when they brushed over the spot where Caroline had sunk her fangs into his flesh. While the marks were gone physically, he often felt her ghostly supple lips and the way her hand cradled the back of his head as he drank from her and she, from him. _This was wrong_, he thought as he took a hold of the girls arms.

"Keep them locked behind you," he compelled before his eyes turned golden and his fangs dropped. He bit down and began to drink the girl's life force away.

"What in heaven's name is going on here?!" Elijah shouted a minute later. Behind him, clinging onto the back of his suit jacket was the wolf girl—her eyes wide with shock.

"Sod off, Elijah," Rebekah said once she unlatched herself from the blonde's neck. She pushed her off so she slumped on the floor, passed out from the lack of blood. "Nik and I are merely enjoying ourselves."

"She's right, brother," Klaus replied as he pushed the redhead off his lap and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "It was a peace offering on her part and I surely couldn't say no." He gave his brother and Hayley a menacing grin, knowing his teeth were still stained with blood.

"You two ought to be ashamed of yourselves," Elijah admonished, staring at Klaus. "Is this how you behave with the mother of your child living here, Niklaus?"

"That's right, dear Elijah," Klaus mocked as he reached out and straightened his brother's jacket lapels. "_My_ child—remember that as you continue to play house with her." Saying that the child was his sounded completely wrong in his mind, but he _had_ to use that knowledge to his advantage. To further aggravate his brother, he gave Hayley a sinister glare, causing her to shudder and huddle even closer to Elijah.

Meanwhile, Rebekah was cleaning the wounds on both the unconscious females—giving them a drop of her blood each to close up the bite marks. Since both girls weren't drained of blood, there was no need for them to ingest any. Besides, they weren't worthy of becoming vampires and Rebekah knew better than to be _that_ careless.

"You forget, brother, this is our house too," Rebekah replied as she stood up and walked over towards Elijah. She narrowed her eyes and scowled at the elder Mikaelson. "Just because you're too busy playing nursemaid doesn't mean we have to forget who _we_ are."

"Enough!" Elijah shouted, pointing towards the door. "Get your harlots out of the house within the hour—the sooner, the better. You know we cannot have this kind of behavior once the child is born."

"Oh, for fuck's sake Elijah," Rebekah shouted as she stood up to her brother. "We're your family or have you forgotten that? Always and forever?" Elijah stood silently as Rebekah continued glaring at him.

"Come on, little sister," Klaus said as he tugged his sister's jacket, causing her to end her stare down. "Perhaps it is best if we left the house too. Let's give the _lovebirds_ their time together to build their little nest."

"Good idea, Nik. Let me get the girls out of the house and I'll pack a bag."

She moved towards the two girls now that they were awake. "You two," she said in a commanding voice. The girls both snapped to attention and stared at Rebekah. "You will get dressed and leave, forgetting everything that happened tonight. All you remember was you two had been drinking." Knowing Elijah was no longer keeping a close eye on her she grinned and continued with her compulsion. "Go back to campus and throw a party. Have fun dancing in front of the entire student body."

The girls repeated the compulsion before putting their shirts back on. Just as they were about to leave, Rebekah grabbed some of Elijah's favorite liquor bottles and shoved them into a paper bag. Klaus had to bite the inside of his mouth to keep from laughing knowing how his brother enjoyed his bottle of Laphroaig.

Before Rebekah could add to her compulsion, Klaus got up and looked at the girls. "Enjoy yourselves tonight, ladies. Share them amongst your friends." He opened the front door, motioning for them to leave. As soon as they did, he flashed upstairs and put some clothes into an overnight bag. Once packed, he grabbed a duffel bag and filled it with some painting supplies, in case he was inspired at night. Downstairs he could hear Elijah admonishing his sister and how she was being ungrateful for not listening to him.

Less than thirty minutes later, Klaus and Rebekah pulled away from their driveway and headed towards the Interstate exit.

"Not a minute too soon," Rebekah said and shook her head.

"Their so-called dancing will bring me nightmares for the next century or two," Klaus muttered. "Why did you have them throw a party once they got back on campus?"

Rebekah started to laugh. "The blonde's father is a pastor at her hometown and the redhead's mum is the university president's secretary. I just wanted the girls to have a little fun, let loose, and maybe get themselves into trouble," she explained and then added a slight pout. "I was merely doing them a favor."

Klaus chucked at his sister's good spirits. As much as they constantly bickered over the millennia, the moments when they got along meant the most to him even though he had never admitted it. "Are you still in the mood to cause a little trouble?"

"What do you have in mind?" She sat up on her seat, clearly interested in what her brother was planning.

"Since we're going out of town again, let's have some fun at Marcel's expense—not a lot, just enough where he would want us out of his hair for a few days."

The younger sibling smiled, as a mischievous gleam appeared in her eyes. "Well, the nightwalkers are out and about, let's head to the city. We can always take the plane to Atlanta, it's not like Elijah will need it."

Klaus chucked and turned the car towards the French Quarter. "As much as I'm tempted, we're not there to massacre his entire lot; remember that, little sister."

"Is that a reminder for you or for me?" she teased causing them both to laugh.

"Touché," Klaus remarked.

"I was hoping our antics would shock him back to reality," Rebekah said, changing the subject as they neared the Quarter once more. She thought about the camaraderie between them. It brought back memories of the 1920s in Chicago until Mikael found them and she was eventually daggered. As much as she was impatient to get to the bottom of all the puzzles in New Orleans, she was enjoying the time she was spending with her brother. Even the fact that he _obviously_ fancied a blonde cheerleader from Mystic Falls didn't seem to bother her as it once did.

To be honest, since their recent return from Mystic Falls, she _liked_ that her brother was willing to let her help him. It felt good to feel useful and now they were meeting a witch who might be able to help them or, at the very least, bring clarity.

"I doubt what we did would have broken whatever magic has befallen him," Klaus replied, breaking his sister out of her thoughts.

"You don't suppose they _are_ having some sordid affair, do you?"

"I haven't a clue, Bekah," he murmured, using his childhood name for his sister. "If they are planning it, I hope whatever has befallen our brother _is_ a curse of sorts and can be undone. As much as I don't want to admit it, he was probably better off with Katerina Petrova. At least he wasn't acting like some simpleton around her."

"I've thought the same thing about Katerina, as much as I despised the girl. I hope we find answers, Nik," Rebekah confessed. "Not just with Elijah, but all of it."

Klaus nodded in agreement. "As do I."

**~Whitmore College~**

_The week had been hectic for both Bonnie and Caroline with what seemed like endless quizzes and exams in addition to the essays they were assigned. They both also decided to turn in Thursday's homework early so they could skip their classes, just in case they wanted to leave early in the morning. _

_Aria sent them a text message Monday night with her address and Caroline did an internet search of the place. It was a fancy hotel with condos above it, known for being one of the tallest buildings in the city. It was in a pricey part of town and as much as the idea of staying near two shopping malls appealed to her, Caroline decided they didn't need to splurge a ton of money for a hotel room. For Bonnie, money didn't matter, as long as she was able to check out some of the area colleges for Jeremy, she was fine. _

_Finding a place to stay wasn't as easy as it seemed. It was such a large city and they really weren't sure if they could afford staying remotely close to where the witch was. Caroline looked at several travel sites, looking for the best deals cross referencing them on a map. Luckily, by Tuesday night, they had found something—a last minute deal for the weekend at a price they couldn't say no to. Plus, it was very close to where Aria was staying. Bonnie booked it and Caroline breathed a sigh of relief once the reservation went through. _

_In between their studying, classes, and planning their trip, they also managed to move Elena's bed over so now Bonnie's was closer to Caroline's. Most of Elena's clothes were carefully folded and stored under the beds so they now had more closet space. Both of them cried as they moved her belongings—the realization that Elena wasn't coming back soon hit them hard. _

_They hadn't heard from their friend since she left and were trying hard not to worry. They reminded themselves that she was a vampire and was unlikely to get herself into trouble if she was careful. It helped because the last thing they needed to do was panic and then run back to Mystic Falls. They imagined telling Jeremy and the whole gang knowing the chaos that would follow. They left numerous messages on her voicemail and only began to worry when her phone number was disconnected. Bonnie was ready to make the call around midnight on Tuesday when Elena sent them both a message from an unknown number. _

_-Sorry, phone died. I'll Skype tomorrow 8 your time. XO E _

_-PS- It's me - we went to school on picture day wearing the same dresses back in 3rd grade. :P_

_The fact that she gave them a childhood memory lightened their moods instantly. Bonnie quickly answered the text with Caroline watching over her shoulder. _

_-Okay, Skype into Caroline's account - we'll both be on. XOXO _

_Having heard from Elena gave them a good burst of energy to tackle Wednesday. By the time they both returned from their long day of classes, they were more than ready for their vacation to start. _

"We can leave tonight, can't we?" Caroline groaned as she flopped down on the bed.

"We could," Bonnie replied. She sat on her own bed, rubbing her temples. "But we'd have to find a place to stay for the night."

Caroline considered the idea momentarily but then decided they probably didn't need to be stuck in some creepy motel along the highway. Even though she was a vampire, it was still the principle of the matter and she didn't want to go looking for trouble. "Ugh, I can't wait until I'm an older vampire and don't require as much sleep," she mumbled as she punched her pillow.

"When does that start to happen?"

"Stefan told me once it won't be for a few decades. It varies but he said it was a good approximation."

"Speaking of Stefan, has he contacted you or even Damon?"

Caroline flipped over so she was on her stomach. "Nope, not yet. You?"

Bonnie shook her head and got up. "No, thank god." She went into the bathroom. She rifled through the medicine cabinet, returning a minute later with some aspirin in her hand. "We could finish packing for our trip."

"Good idea! And then we can Skype with Elena after we grab our food," Caroline replied, her mood lightening up at the prospect of talking to their friend in a few hours. She checked her phone for the weather forecast this weekend in Atlanta and decided to bring an extra bag of clothes in anticipation of the cooler temperatures and made sure Bonnie did the same.

A couple hours later, they both took a break and headed to the student center for dinner.

"I have some playlists made for the drive," Caroline announced while waiting for her fries to cool.

"Hey now, I have some playlists of my own," Bonnie teased as she cut her burger in half.

"Fine," Caroline replied with mock annoyance. "Driver rules then?"

"Yep, driver gets to choose the music," Bonnie said nodding her head. "Hey the dessert stand just brought out some fresh stuff, you want anything?"

"You know what we should do? You go grab a couple of their warm, fudgey brownies and I'll go get some ice cream and stuff so we can have sundaes in the room."

Ten minutes later, they were back in their dorm room and started to build their ice cream, brownie sundaes.

"Oh god, we needed this," Caroline moaned and shut her eyes as she licked the spoon.

"Yeah, this week was rough," Bonnie said and propped her feet on the third chair of their dinette set.

"This was a great idea, Care." She held her spoon out and clinked it with Caroline's.

"Our trip will do us some good," Caroline quipped. "Aria helping the Originals—do you think it's really a bad situation?"

"I think so," Bonnie replied. "They don't usually ask for witches to help them unless they are facing some sort of danger or threat. I mean, they _are_ the Original vampires so it's got to be bad."

"I guess the good thing is you're helping them, right?"

"I think that's relative," Bonnie remarked. "It depends on what the alternative would be. That's one of the reasons why witches tend to side against vampires, generally speaking, of course. You remember how I was…um, a little judgmental."

Caroline nodded. "Yeah, I remember. I thought you were going to hate me when I turned."

"That was the way I was brought up to believe. I didn't realize it until I died. Expression was bad, Care—in some ways, I was just as bad as vampires because it didn't matter who I killed or who was sacrificed. I don't want to go through a similar situation again. If I need to walk away from whatever I'm getting into, I'll do it and not look back."

"I understand. You were always put in a position to be used in some way. Believe me, I know," Caroline admitted with a roll of her eyes. "That's why I immediately jumped to the conclusion that you were going to use me as bait."

"Thanks, Care and I'm sorry if I made you believe I was using you."

Before they could say more, Caroline's laptop chimed indicating an incoming Skype. They moved around their table set so they were able to chat together.

"Hey guys!" Elena greeted as soon as they got the camera up.

"We miss you!" Bonnie and Caroline said at the same time and then started laughing at themselves.

"I miss you both too. Sorry, the charger died and I was in the middle of nowhere. It took a while before I got to a store that sold a replacement one. By then, I just decided to change my number, too."

"Well, where are you?" Caroline asked.

"Remember that town Rebekah and I went to when I had my humanity off?" Elena began. "The one where I pretended to be Katherine, but Elijah caught on?"

"Oh yeah, I remember hearing about that," Bonnie replied.

"Well, I went back there because I had her memories of a bank account. It felt weird, but I managed to access it so now I've got some money that's untraceable since I'm not using family money."

"That's smart," Caroline remarked. "Are you doing okay? Getting enough blood and all?"

Elena nodded. "Yep, I am, don't worry, _mom_!" she teased.

"I hated when you called me that during junior high school," Caroline huffed. She tried to look angry at Elena but was in such a good mood, she couldn't. "So where are you headed off to next?"

"I'm probably going to head towards California, maybe tomorrow sometime. I'm not sure—I'll play things by ear. What about you guys, going back home this weekend?"

Bonnie explained they were headed off to Atlanta. She didn't elaborate about helping the Rebekah. She didn't want, on an off chance, Elena to think she was obligated to come back and help in some fashion.

"Sounds good! I'm glad you're not going to stay in some dive place either," Elena replied. "So maybe we'll catch up middle of next week?"

"That sounds great!" Caroline replied.

"Oh Elena," Bonnie began, I forgot to tell you this when we were in Mystic Falls. It was hard to catch you away from Jeremy and I didn't want to intrude. Then after you told me you were leaving I was too upset. I found something out... from Grams."

"I hope it's good news," Elena said. "If you're going to say this is going to cause me to die, I may not be as forgiving," she added jokingly.

Bonnie stuck her tongue out at the laptop screen. "No, it's not bad. We sort of figured it out, but now we have some consensus," she replied. Bonnie then proceeded to tell Elena there was no danger with her new found knowledge and conscience.

"So as long as I don't go ballistic like before and just enjoy life, this should all be okay…" Elena repeated, nodding her head. "I like that. Thanks for letting me know. Is it wrong that I used her money, though? Be honest."

"Who knows how she got her money in the first place," Caroline began. "I don't have a problem with you using her money to help discover yourself. Besides, it's not like you're going to spend it all on booze, right?"

"No," Elena replied and laughed. "Since I sort of made my peace with her, maybe I could, in a sense, help redeem her while helping me grow at the same time."

Bonnie and Caroline looked at each other and then nodded at the laptop. "I think that's a good attitude to take," Bonnie replied.

"Okay well, I'm going to go out and grab some dessert. Whatever you're eating looks delicious. Maybe I'll be on the road the same time you are!" Elena quipped.

They said their goodnights and set plans to Skype again next week with promises of recaps of their trip.

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**Hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think :).**

**Next stop will be Atlanta. For those who celebrate, have a wonderful Easter. I'll be watching Captain America, after a nice run. XO~ sushi**


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